Tech in the News | At Home with Tech

June 30, 2013

Time to Buy a Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Do I own a Bluetooth speaker? Not yet. Do I need one? Absolutely! Which one should I buy? Let’s find out…

I’m not a big fan of Bluetooth tech.
Not yet.

I never really got into those tiny Bluetooth headsets for your mobile phone.
(Sure, they were cool when Lt. Uhura wore one on the Starship Enterprise. Now that they’re real… not so much.)

My first meaningful Bluetooth experience was with my first iMac’s mouse and keyboard.

I was so excited by the concept…

A clear desk without wires or clutter
Only the iMac
Just like in the commercials

Well, I quickly realized it would take more than the loss of a two wires to clean up my home workspace.
My desk is eternally populated with note-pad stickies attached to every inch of clear surface!
(If you know of a support group, please let me know!)

And then I faced the reality that you have to keep changing out batteries to maintain the Bluetooth fantasy.
Worse still, you need to occasionally trouble shoot a failed Bluetooth connection when you boot up your Mac.

Typically, the solution is manually reconnecting the Bluetooth device with your mouse. But how do you do that when it’s your Bluetooth mouse on the fritz?!
Years ago, I bought an old-school wired mouse as a back-up solution.

I proactively addressed the problem with my current iMac by acquiring both a Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad.
That way, when one Bluetooth device goes out, the other one can come to its rescue.
Very symbiotic, don’t you think?

So let’s just say I haven’t been wowed by Bluetooth.
Not yet…

Realizing the Universal Wisdom of Bluetooth
Last weekend my family and I were attending a little barbecue event at a friend’s house. Kids were running about and spraying each other with two garden hoses. (My son somehow managed to stay dry, yet remain in the action.)
Some of the parents were marveling the hearty vegetable garden.
Others were enjoying a cold drink.

Where was I?
Staring at a ‘mini’ black monolith, suspended by thin strings in a living room window.

I wanted to touch it.
I felt it held the answers to the universe.
The host walked up, and he handed me an animal femur to throw high into the air.
(no he didn’t)

But he did explain I was looking at his new battery-driven, portable
Jawbone Jambox Bluetooth Speaker.
It had been paired with an iPhone, resting not far away.
No wires…other than the occasional power cable to charge up its battery.

Not only was it born to project beautiful tunes via the iPhone, but it also does double duty as a speakerphone. (It even has its own microphone.)

Interesting…
I moved closer to the Monolith.
Contact.
I felt my brain growing…

The Search for Sweet Music in Every Room
My new knowledge quickly began percolating towards solving one of my home tech projects:
Bringing music (back) into every room in my house.

Once upon a time, I could just pop a radio or stereo into a few rooms, tune them to my favorite station, and presto, I had a whole-house music solution!

Actually, I don’t need music in every single room, but it would be nice to cover the major zones.
I’ve fallen a bit behind since terrestrial radio tech has become so passé.
(I don’t think I’ve turned one on at home in a year!)

My Grounded AirPort Express
I’ve tried using a few Apple AirPort Express units around the house to wirelessly connect up a few speakers to simulate the same effect using iTunes and music streaming. But I’ve encountered mixed results.

Sometimes, the AirPort Express units need to be rebooted.
Occasionally, I’ve experienced scratchy interference generated by some other selfish device like a microwave.
(The fact that my Express units are the older ‘802.11g’ variety and not the newer ‘802.11n’ may have something to do with this problem.)
Plus, you’ve got to boot up a computer and then iTunes to get the music going. That’s never quite as fast as clicking a knob or pressing a stereo ‘on’ button.

It’s just not been a quick ‘set it and forget it’ solution.

Sure, I know you can hard wire your house for audio…but I don’t have the appetite for such a major project right now.

But if I can’t have music in every room I walk into, maybe the solution is to bring the music with me into whatever room I happen to be in…

…via Bluetooth!
(cue the angelic chorus)

So Many Choices!
Buy a portable Bluetooth speaker and then move it wherever you need it.
(Yeah, that’s the ticket.)

So I began my research, and it was at this point I felt a bit like Rip Van Winkle.
Portable Bluetooth speakers are hardly a new item.
They’ve been around for a few years; the Jambox was a sensation back in 2010.

But now, there’s a veritable army of them out there to choose from.
This year’s CES was filled with them.

Many of the newer ones are designed for outdoor rugged-on-the-road or at-the-beach use.

The good news is my durability requirements are slightly less ambitious…
(That said, I do have a three year old!)

Let the Shopping Begin…

So which Bluetooth speaker to buy?
I went online to see if I could identify a cyber consensus.
And a few trends began to emerge…

Bose SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II

Everyone seems to agree that the
Bose SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II is the best one out there.
But it’s wicked expensive at $299.

There’s also Bose’s brand new SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker at $199.
It starts shipping on July 1, and the initial buzz is strong.
(When was the last time Bose didn’t come up with a product that was amazing, but overpriced?)

Jawbone Jambox

Compared to today’s competition, the Jawbone Jambox is still a strong contender, but isn’t as universally adored as it once was. It’s also considered too expensive at its base price of $180, considering the cost/value analysis of the competition.
(You can pick it up from Amazon for only $129.79)

There’s also the Jambox’s newer and larger cousin, the Jawbone Big Jambox.
The reviews say it’s…yes, bigger and better.
But it’s added power comes at a cost…$299.00.
($272.33 on Amazon.)

Logitech UE Mobile Boombox

The Logitech UE Mobile Boombox hits the sweet spot.
It’s only $100 and gets great reviews-

This is the closest I’ve come to finding online consensus for anything in quite a while…

How Low Can You Go?
A hundred smackers isn’t an unbreakable baseline.
You’ve got a plethora of choices in the sub-$100 arena too.
And cheap does not equal bad.

Philips SoundShooter Wireless

One example is the Philips SoundShooter Wireless, which garners positive reviews considering its $50 price tag. ($46.86 on Amazon)
(Plus, you know how much I’m into Philips these days with their cool LED light bulbs.)

It can’t match the more expensive competition, but reviews like CNET’s say it’s surprisingly good…

Any Color of the Rainbow?
Henry Ford was famous for allegedly saying that people could have any color of his 1909 Model T car they wanted… so long as it was black.
Bose follows the same philosophy, and the basic black works just fine for me.
(Actually, the $299 Bose also comes in silver and white.)

But I should mention the other companies above have an explosion of colors to offer the more colorful mindset.

And the Winner Is…
So it’s hard to go wrong these days buying a Bluetooth portable speaker.
Whether you spend $50 or $300, you’re going to get a device that blasts out your tunes and doubles as a speaker phone to boot!

As a bonus, Bluetooth speakers can also give more audio oomph to the visuals on your laptop or iPad.

You can debate the sound quality and battery life of each speaker… but essentially the job is going to get done.

Drum roll please…
Yesterday, I pulled the trigger on the Logitech UE Mobile Boombox.
It strikes the perfect balance between price and quality.

Got it from Amazon Prime for $98.95.
(Today, it’s listed for $97.94. D’oh!)

It’s already in the mail, but if you’ve got your own recommendations, I’m listening…
(I could always return the Logitech…)

Either way, I’m hopeful this singular sound solution will soon be bringing the music back into my life.

I’ve joined the Bluetooth generation.
(Yay, Barrett.)

But does this mean since I’ve finally embraced Bluetooth tech, it’s now doomed to near obsolescence?

Not yet…

1 Comment

June 2, 2013

Apple Took My QuickTime Movie Trailers Away

If you like downloading your movie trailers, you’re in big trouble.
Apple is quietly removing this functionality from iTunes Movie Trailers.
Now, it’s streaming only!

I really like movie trailers.
A lot.

A well-crafted movie trailer can capture the essence of a really great movie.

I’ve got a little folder in my iMac with all my favorite movie trailers from the past few years. Plus, they live in smaller form in iTunes so I can watch them on my iPhone.

Sometimes I just like watching my trove of trailers on the train during my daily commute as a Road Warrior.
(call me wacky)

So yes, I like having my little collection of movie trailers, thank you very much.
But I’ve paid nothing for the privilege.

And once you download the trailer, you essentially own the file.

I suspect there are a bunch of Hollywood folks out there intent on killing my joy, because they feel they’ve left some money on the table.

And I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve been having a few lunches with Apple lately.

Now You See It… Now You Don’t!
Depending how you look at it, May 22 in history has not been a fabulous day:

334 BC – Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia
1931 – Canned rattlesnake meat goes on sale in Florida
1992 – Johnny Carson leaves the Tonight Show
2013 – Apple quietly eliminates QuickTime movie trailer downloads in iTunes

What?!

Suddenly, every new QuickTime movie trailer posted after May 22 is no longer downloadable…

And it’s just a matter of time until Apple’s older downloadable inventory is erased from existence as the newer trailers replace them!

It’s a slow, but sure downgrade.

This is bad.

(pause)

But it gets worse.

Before, you could download a trailer in glorious 1080p.
Not anymore.
And guess what? You can’t stream it in 1080p either!
Because 720p is the largest streaming size Apple has ever served up.

So you can kiss your entire 1080p movie trailer viewing experience goodbye.
(at least via iTunes Movie Trailers)

If you’re starting to hyperventilate, I recommend you go to the phone and call
1-800-I’m a Nerd.

I’ve done the research, and I’m estimating there are about seventeen other people who seem to care about this dastardly secret I’ve uncovered.
(Actually, MacRumors broke the story.)

Everyone else can go happily about your life.

1080p Is So Yesterday?
Streaming your movie trailers might be fine as long as you have a strong Internet connection.
Without one, you’re going to have to wait a while before watching anything!

But if streaming is now the new norm for watching your trailers, you’d feel a bit better if you had the consolation prize to at least stream your movie trailers in 1080p.

Other websites are streaming 1080p…
(like YouTube)
What’s up with Apple?

In an ever evolving 1080p/3D/4K world of more pixels, Apple has inexplicably ceded a leadership position and taken a step in the opposite direction, settling comfortably back to the ‘HD light’ flavor of 720p.

You know, I think it’s time to write a letter…

Dear Apple…
I don’t really know why you’ve chosen to forsake the movie trailer lovers of the world.
(in fact, nobody seems to)

Yes, maybe you’ve been getting pressure from the movie moguls, but you’ve been quietly reacting without public comment.

Please know that we’d really like the download option back, please.
(including those 1080p files)

I can guess being in the movie trailer distribution business has probably not been a profitable venture for you.
(It’s been a free QuickTime service up until now…)

And Hollywood is probably giving you some pressure.

So if this is about money… that’s okay.

Please come up with some new ‘i-Service’ that includes the movie trailer downloads, and I’ll send over more money.
(I’m already happily paying significant green to maintain my own ‘i-Life.‘
A few more dollars won’t matter.)

Just, please… restore my little joy.

Your friend,

-Barrett

(sigh)

3 Comments

May 26, 2013

A Free Terabyte from Flickr

Whenever you receive an email about a ‘change of service,’ smiling is usually not your first reaction. That said, your friends from Flickr seem intent on giving you a tickle. The hard part is deciding how your left brain should respond.

I got an email from Flickr last week.
It said, “Smile. The Flickr You Love Just Got Better.”

Oh?

Yahoo’s Flickr has just significantly upgraded its free account plan.
Before, they gave you a paltry storage limit of only 200 photos.
That’ll last you about fourteen minutes.

Now, the limit is a whopping 1 terabyte.

A free terabyte?!
Yahoo says that will get you over 500,000 photos.

I was a little dazed.
Didn’t know whether to smile or not.

Wasting $25 for Flicker Pro?
Before, it was a no brainer…
The old 200 photo limit clearly wasn’t enough.
So I’ve been shelling out $25/year for a Flickr Pro account, which gave me unlimited storage.
Problem solved, right?

But now… there’s the cool new ‘Free’ plan that makes the old Pro plan seems like an expensive downgrade.
A sudden dinosaur doomed for extinction.

(That said, dinosaurs aren’t so bad. My three-year-old ‘Indiana Jones’ has been teaching me how cool dinosaurs can be with his new T-Rex puzzle!)

This sounds like a SmackDown in the making between ‘Free’ and ‘Pro.’
How exciting!

Free is Hard to Beat
Unlimited is nice, but a terabyte is plenty of storage for all the photos you’d ever want to share.
Believe me, nobody wants to look at half a million of your photos online!
(yes, even mine)

But wait, there’s more!
Yahoo has juiced their free Flickr plan even further:

Before they gave you an upload limit of 300MB/month.
Now, that’s unlimited!
Before, the maximum size per photo was 30 MB.
Now, it’s 200MB.
(But who really creates photos that large anyway?)
Before, you didn’t have full-resolution photo access.
Now you do.
They’ve also expanded their video uploading and storage limits.
(Though I’m not using Flickr for videos right now. I’ve got Vimeo for that.)

Legacy Flickr Pro
The Pro plan is no longer offered to new Flickr subscribers, but if you’re currently a Pro user, you can retain your legacy Pro account and get the following:

You’ll continue to have the same unlimited storage for your photos and videos
You’ll still get your detailed stats
You’ll be upgraded to the same photo and video size limits as the new free accounts.
And you’ll continue to have an ad-free experience

Deal or No Deal?
If you don’t think you need your Pro account anymore, Flickr is happy to switch you to a free account before August 20 and give you a prorated rebate.
(They’re so nice.)

So what do you really get for your $25 to stick with Pro?

For me, it comes down to the unlimited storage and the ban on ads.
And again, who really needs unlimited storage for sharing photos?

So, it’s the advertising.

Hmmmmm….

Selling Your Soul for $25?
Look, I get that Yahoo needs to make a buck, and putting ads on your photo galleries is one way to do that.

I’m not angry with Yahoo for wanting to commercialize my photo pages.
I’m just not that happy about it.

So when Yahoo gives you an advertising out for $25/year…
I say, “Take it!!”

Yes!! I’ll pay $25 to have my photos and galleries remain ‘ad-free!’

Freedom Comes with a Price
If you also want an ad-free experience like me, but you aren’t currently a Pro subscriber, it’s going to cost you more:

$49.99/year

Yup.

See, you should have gone Pro when you had the chance.
It stinks to have to pay twice as much, but it’s still worth it.

Doublr
Flickr also offers a new ‘Doublr’ account ,which gives you twice the storage of the new free account.

So that’s 2 terabytes for
$499.99/year

What??!!
Yes, it’s not a typo.
Not sure I understand the math here.

I’m paying $25 for unlimited storage, and some new guy is supposed to pay $500 for 2 terabytes, while his friend is getting 1 terabyte for free?

That’s just nutty.

Hey, how about 2 free Flickr accounts?!
That’ll do the trick.

What’s a Terabyte?
As a quick aside, I must mention that Flickr has a paragraph on its Accounts FAQ page titled, “What’s a Terabyte?”

I can’t tell you how happy I am that Yahoo feels the need to explain this.
Why, you ask?

The fact that Yahoo wants to share with you that a terabyte is a trillion bytes,
(duh!!)
helps me feel like I’m not shooting too low in my knowledge-transfer goals on my blog.

That said, I feel compelled to share with you this additional data, which I learned from a cool Cisco report.
(Time to put on your nerd glasses!)

1000 terabytes – 1 petabyte
1000 petabytes = 1 exabyte
1000 exabytes = 1 zettabyte

(See… a terabyte is already so yesterday!)

Maybe one day, Yahoo will offer up a zettabyte of storage for free with their new Virtual Reality Flickr accounts… perfect for your newly installed holodeck!

The Dinosaur Plan is Better
Let’s recap:

Once upon a time, I used to happily pay $99/year for MobileMe, which included Apple’s wonderful photo and video galleries.
(R.I.P.)
Now in hindsight, 20 gigs of storage seem downright stingy.

A terabyte of free Flickr storage is just silly good!
Period.

But there are still the annoying ads.
$50/year is easily worth it to scrub those pesky ads off your galleries.

And $25 for unlimited storage (ongoing Pro subscribers only) is a downright bargain!

Yes, I’ve been designated a dinosaur by Flickr, but I feel they’ve actually handed me the deal of the year!

And if you were wondering…
Flickr has pledged to maintain the legacy Pro plan for existing users.
(Hee Hee Hee!)

Just be sure you’ve got a recurring Pro subscription…

Am I smiling, Flickr?
You betcha!

Category: Tech in the News

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