After seeing the new iPhone, I can’t help but noticed there are many great comparisons between the iPhone 4.0, vs the HTC EVO, and also the iOS4, vs Android 2.2  (Froyo).  To me, they both have their pros and cons, so I don’t really want to discuss about them now.

So when will Android close  the gap with iOS4? or a better question is, when will there ever be a Android device that can deliver the level of user experience comparable or better than the iPhone4?

My response is, probably not in the next few years.

Why? Because that is the difference between integrated design, vs component design.

The theory is like this, when the design is separated into hardware and software, made by two different entities, there ought to be compatibility issues.  Both parties will say that they are correct, and it takes time to nail down the source of the problem and fix the problem.

From the economics point of view, it will also take a while before  any Android phone will catch up.  When a company such as HTC, whose main revenue is from selling hardware, they are inclined to create a series of small hardware updates that can bring to the market.  They will simply spend 20% of additional resource, to create the next phone that fits for 80% of their target audience.  That is also why they will never be, Perfect.

Think about during the PC times – x86 computers, Pentium computers, Core2Duo, etc, there was never a “perfect” machine. There were “good enough for my budget” machines.  The Macs are not perfect either.  But it turned to a direction that markets themselves as an “art piece” – much like the Aston Martin that the TechCrunch article refers to.

Having a perfect product (or closed to perfect) will require someone who has the dedication to oversee the entire architecture (think about an architect who is  building the skyscraper), the chief architecture is solely responsible for the overall delivery of the experience.  This is what makes Steve Jobs, one of the best productizer in the history of consumer electronics.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I truly believe that Android will have a much larger user base in the long run – because of falling hardware from China’s manufacturer, who can provide lots of “good enough” devices and an software open platform.  I just think that it will take several years before there is one that matches the iPhone4.

Related posts:

1. Battle Between Mobile Platforms – iPhone, Android, WinMo, Symbian, Blackberry

There has been more and more discussion about the growing nature of the world wide web, in particular in the thoughts about privacy, openness (closeness), controllability, and even censorship.

The initial idea about writing this article stemmed from this interesting article from New York Times, The Death of the Open Web by Virginia Heffernan, on May 17.

The article offered the closest analogy I have read, which compares the open web as urban city centers, vs the gated web (like Apple iPhone/iPad, or Facebook) to the  suburban livings.

Like the great modern American cities, the Web was founded on equal parts opportunism and idealism. Over the years, nerds, students, creeps, outlaws, rebels, moms, fans, church mice, good-time Charlies, middle managers, senior citizens, starlets, presidents and corporate predators all made their home on the Web. In spite of a growing consensus about the dangers of Web vertigo and the importance of curation, there were surprisingly few “walled gardens” online — like the one Facebook purports to (but does not really) represent.

The analogy stands in many ways, it explained why people flocked to the gated communities after experiencing the “anything-goes” wild wild web.  It is simply because it works well without worrying about security, vulnerability, and other potential dangers.  This is the reason why iPhone and iPad were selling like hotcakes, not just to technophobics, but also very tech-capable geeks.

Some may argue, that this is a repetition of history, that back in 1990s (I was too young to remember that) the fight between Windows vs Mac had the same fight between open and closed platforms.

At that time, Microsoft opened up its platform to allowed PC clones, and dominated the desktop market over Apple.

The closed group this time, is led by

• Apple – with its iPhone/iPad app store platform creating a controlled environment, no flash, no freedom for its user to choose what to install
• Facebook – taking users’ privacy and keeping for its own use and for its partners.  the information are not indexable.

The open group, represented by

• Windows, Linux, Android – install any programs (apps)
• Twitter  - very open API that allow anybody and whatever program to access information

There is a big difference between the last fight circa-1990 vs the one fighting today: North American population using technology has gotten matured.

Matured people have experienced all the greatness and all the dangers of the open web, and hence, they would prefer the comfortable, safe suburban life, where one can easily achieve what they would need.

I would like to end the blog by throwing out another dimension of open web, comparing the North American culture vs Chinese culture, that North American culture would embrace more to the gated community, where as  Chinese culture would embrace the wild wild web much more because they have not experienced it enough.  Hence, I can imagine the Open web will be very successful in China (Android, non-Apple), if the government censorship allows.

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1. Best IM client for the iPad

This past week I was extremely busy, mostly because there was a flurry of technology/travel conferences in Beijing.

Tuesday May 25 – Startup2Startup event with the gang from “Geeks On A Plane”
Wednesday May 26 – Travel Global Summit
Thursday, Friday May 27 -28 – CHINICT (chinict.org)
Saturday May 29 – China Webmaster Conference by Comsenz
Sunday May 30 – Technology and Scientific Exhibition
Monday May 31 – TMT China by China Entrepreneurs
Tuesday June 1 – Software Exhibition

It wasn’t until today that I finally had some time off.

I had always wondered why all of these conferences are all packed within the same week. My friend Beijingdaze had a very good comment on this, that “this is the same as why there are 5 stores selling the exact models of cellphone next to each other”. Well, I guess this is China specialty (中国特色)!

I also noticed that I had recently been blogging quite a lot about iPad, which I must admit, had been driving a lot of my traffic. (almost getting more pageviews than Wherefun.com?)  However, since the theme of my blog is regarding technology, sustainability, and life, I really should talk about the other two subjects also!

So, I’ll make this a life post.

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1. Beijing: Why free internet in is coming to an end, and coffee is going to be big

I’m getting the iPad’s Camera Connection Kit shipped from the US, and should arrive next week.

In the mean time, I am very excited about what it can do! I have read online that it already can:
1. hook up a USB keyboard – I’m very excited about this feature! Since I have purchased their original dock, it would be great to type quickly in the office!
2. USB audio – both microphone and speaker would work – although I can’t imagine myself using this.
3. Videos and Photos stored in SD or USB flash drives.
4. (with jailbreaking) open any file on the SD card.

Since I was looking around, and I can’t find any other great use without hacking the iPad, I am trying to see if there are any other additional use?

Some of my suggestions (probably requires jailbreaking):

1. Creating a SD card or USB flash drive that has a directory listing of DCIM (aparently this is the directory that iPad was looking for).
2. USB webcam – somehow create image buffer in the DCIM directory?
3. 3G rocket stick
4. connecting to a printer
5. USB to TV (very likely – if the TV can see the ipad as a mass storage)
6. Hook up with external DVD/CD/hard drive (port is not powered, but need to draw from others)

If there are other suggestions, please leave me a comment!

Related posts:

1. Using my iPad as a second monitor for my windows laptop
2. My iPad review
3. Best IM client for the iPad

I had been using the iPad for over 2 months now, and before the iPhone OS 4.0 with the background apps running capability, the iPad will always have problem being used as an instant messenging machine.

The best IM client I have used so far is IM+ lite, which is a free app. I don’t quite know what the paid version is better for, but the free one does the job for me.

The app has Twitter, google chat, msn, Facebook, yahoo, and a few more. It also has a web browser built in, so you don’t need to switch out for safari.

This app alone has been my only app open when at conferences. I can tweet up my notes, chat with my friends, and also browse online. All at the same time.

There are still some bugs, especially the web browser is soo slow and often crashes the app. Nonetheless, this is still one of the better free apps that i would use daily.

Related posts:

1. What can I do with USB connector on iPad?
2. My iPad review
3. Using my iPad as a second monitor for my windows laptop

This is a guide for those who wants to use the iPad as a second monitor for a windows laptop.

Here’s what I used:

• ultraVNC (uvnc.com) for PC (free)
• Mocha VNC Lite – for the iPad (free)

It’s actually very simple to do.

1. Install the ultraVNC server

2. You should see the VNC Server icon in the task bar. Right click on it.

3. Click on Admin Property, select Display No 2

I chose to Remove Aero and Wallpaper, just to make it go faster

4. Right Click on uVNC Icon again and then Properties. Select Video  Hook Driver.  Optionally select the Low Accuracy to increase speed.

5. One more setting:

In  C:\Program Files\UltraVNC, edit ultravnc.ini, to enable to secondary display:

primary=1
secondary=1

6. Make sure your laptop’s Display #2 is active, select  Extend these displays

7. Startup Mocha Lite on your iPad.  Note: IP address will be the  laptop’s address, possibly 192.168.0.x but depends on the network. You can find it out by hovering over the uVNC server icon. Port number is 5902.

You will find that when it starts up it is basically mirroring your display. However,  you can use your finger to scroll the screen – and that will display a second screen.

Next, get a stand and enjoy it as your second screen!

P.S. for those who do not have a laptop, google something called the Virtual Video Driver. I found one here.  I don’t think I’ve got it working on my Windows 7 but I later realize my laptop card can do without.

There are programs and solutions available for the Mac Users,

iDisplay:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/idisplay/id363500805?mt=8

Mocha VNC Lite + Screen Recycler:  http://marthees.com/2010/04/hacksugar-using-your-ipad-as-a-second-monitor/

Related posts:

1. Best IM client for the iPad
2. My iPad review
3. What can I do with USB connector on iPad?

A few simple observations when I’m in Beijing’s McDonald’s.

1. I noticed there is an open access point called McDonald’s. With joy, I knew they are offering some free internet.   With a catch  - only 30 minutes per day. You will also need to enter your personal information, such as ID card, name, and email address because it is REQUIRED by law to do so. (互联网上网服务营业场所管理条例第23条)

Think about all the Starbucks and Hotels and Restaurant access points and how you can just log on with a simple WEP password or more likely no password.

Once the 30 minutes are up, you will need to purchase credits -

• 24 hrs for 10RMB (about 1.5USD)
• 1 month for  48RMB  (about 7USD)

The company that operates behind this teamed up with Y5zone – one of the Wifi operators in Hong Kong, which pretty much put the entire city into a paid wifi zone.  Looks like this business model is coming soon in Beijing.

2. Coffee drinkers

While ordering a meal, I noticed many people opted to get coffee instead of the regular pop.  Now, I think it’s only recently that McD began to offer free coffee refills in China.  I can see about 30-40% of people in the restaurant having a coffee mug in their hands during peak lunch hour.

So, what does that mean?

Starbucks and chain cafes had long had a foot hold in Beijing. They are able to get away with charging 15RMB (2USD) for a tall (smallest) coffee of the day.  A specialty coffee of the same size is 24RMB (3.5USD).  Almost on par with US, one may say.  But, here is what 15RMB in Beijing can get you:

• A McChicken Combo in McDonald’s (yes, the burger, fries, and medium drink)
• 15 cups of soydrink
• 10 days of milk
• 2 bowls of beef noodles

Obvioiusly, Starbucks  or similarly priced coffee were not for mainstream consumers.

Now, with McDonald’s making their coffee cheap (at  8RMB, or 1.1 USD), and offering free refills, coffee is about to hit to the mass market.  Along with the Taiwanese 95degree chain hitting up China, coffee will make a good run to the traditionally tea-only culture.

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1. Updates from Beijing, June 2010

It has been exactly one week since I’ve gotten the iPad. And because this is the first product I ever owned and used from apple, i figured my experience may be of interest for many people who are skeptical of the latest hyped gadget. I got the 16g version and with only wifi.
Setting up
Since i am in Canada, and the ipad has not yet released here yet, I needed to setup a different account for the iTunes store in order to download apps. This is my first encounter with iTunes, and I really didn’t like it a lot. It was slow, tried to convert all my files to aac, and it bitched me about the us apps that I downloaded. Painful.

Using it
Many people asks me when would I be using it. My response: any time that I do not need USB support, flash, or camera.

I really enjoy reading on the web and having the tv on in the background showing sports highlight or the game. I used to do that with my laptop so it was a bit heavy after a while. I have a 13″ laptop and it weighs about 2.5 lbs. Still, it’s the form factor that makes it a winner. I can imagine the game shows on tv, say jeopardy, has an app that allows tv viewers to play along.

I also have a dock that i put right next to my laptop. I always have twitter on that gives me real time feeds. I also know that there is an app called iDisplay, that let the ipad be used as a monitor extension. Too bad it only works for Mac osx for now, but this will definitely be the app that I buy.

I downloaded a few game apps, like sudoku and air hockey, and just gave the ipad to my mom. After teaching her how to get back to the home screen and shutting it off,she was off to it for the whole evening. Amazing. I used to train computer illiterates so this is quite an interesting moment.

Reading in bed is great. Aside from the ibookstore, there are other free apps that allow you to download free books. Although those books are mostly the classical literatures, but they are actually that ones that I had always wanted to read but sometimes find it too troublesome to borrow from the library because I don’t know where they are at.

Watching videos is also great. There is the YouTube app, and even a youku app. For those who don’t know, youku is the Chinese version of YouTube, and they were known for lots of copyrighted materials.

I am getting quite good at typing on this iPad. This entire blog post is typed on it.

To answer a few critics:
No USB – it will be nice to be able to hook up memory cards, etc without the attachment. But it hasn’t been a problem for me yet.

No flash – most of the major websites had updated to this html5 format, so it’s not a big deal now. However, I do notice that most Chinese sites are very flash focused, so I’m sure it will be quite a trouble when I start to use it in china.

No camera – again, i have my laptop or cellphone to do this. Not a problem for me yet. Hard to type on – although I’m getting quite good at it, I do find that that are some weird stuff happening at the keyboard. For example, I always typed the z wrong, missing the ‘ , and I actually didn’t realize how many words I typed incorrectly until apple automatically corrects for it. If i typed something wrong, it’s very difficult to tap back to that word or changing a letter of the word. I needed to erase the entire word to change.

No multitasking – os4. That’s all i am hoping for. I really missed it when i cannot do instant messages when i browse. This is the only major problem that i have.

True problems that i found when I’m using it:
ITunes and the whole concept of it – this whole centrally located files concept have got to change. I don’t like to or usually w ant to sync up with my laptop.

Some of my emails aren’t showing up the right encoding- not sure if it’s because the senders encoding has messed up or what, but one in five emails i got in chinese is messed up.

The desktop is too cluttered – i downloaded lots of apps, so i have five different screens and its getting really difficult to find the right app. this I heard is being addressed ini the next big update Finger print smudges – it’s kind of obviously if you view it on the side.

Final thoughts:
I think this is a great device. Although it doesn’t have USB, camera, but that’s why I have my laptop for. I see it as a great companion to the laptop, where I watch tv and can also have the iPad on my lap, browsing or twittering(but not both at the same time due to the lack of multitasking)

For the 500us I think this is the version that makes the most sense. The hardware cost alone is around 250us, so there isn’t much profit margins for apple!

I also think that it is unnecessary to get the higher model because this iPad is meant to be used in a networked environment,like my home or office, or airport or coffeeshops. Pretty much anywhere. So, you can always get contents on the fly, download a new app, etc. Furthermore, I was able to use my nokia phone to tether my 3G connection. I also heard that there are lots of other options, such as verizon’s MiFi card which combines the 3G card with a wifi router in the form of credit card size box.

Related posts:

1. What can I do with USB connector on iPad?
2. Using my iPad as a second monitor for my windows laptop
3. Best IM client for the iPad