Tag: Apple (Page 10 of 10)

      Just Released – XROAD G-Map

      March 13, 2009 /

      The first turn-by-turn GPS app for the iPhone was released this week from a company called XROAD. And to pretty glowing reviews:

      xroads g-map

      The iPhone has unquestionably dominated the mobile phone industry for the past two years. One of its biggest advantages over other devices is the long list of applications of every variety that can be downloaded to it. There are “apps” for everything from keeping track of your Twitter feed to following your favorite baseball team. Finally, after nearly two years, a developer has released the first real-time, turn-by-turn navigation application for the iPhone. XROADS G-Map ($19) is clearly the best real-time navigation option for an iPhone right now, but we ran it through the same tests we would a stand-alone TomTom, Garmin or Mio system to see how it fared with the big boys of navigation.

      …

      While there is room for improvement in this product, this is also the first attempt at a real-time turn-by-turn navigation application for the iPhone. As long as XROADS is willing to follow what other developers have done by offering free updates, this app is sure to take a chunk out of the GPS navigation market.

      Wow, that’s not what I expected for the iPhone’s first crack at a turn-by-turn GPS app. Kudos to XROAD. And at $20, this app is a great deal. But there are some obvious improvements to be had.

      First, and foremost in my mind is voice routing. When I drive I am usually paying attention to the road and listening to the radio. I don’t mind getting interrupted to let me know a turn is coming. In fact, I expect it. I can’t be expected to be watching the road and a map at the same time. It’s not safe or fun.

      Also, the lack of street names is tough. Especially when driving on crowded city streets. When there are many streets coming up, it is nice to be able to be able to check the street you’re turning onto before you get there. And even better, the street before that.

      Knocks aside, this looks to be a winner which is hopefully a good sign of things to come. XROAD did the best they could do for now without using all the hard drive space on the iPhone. Some small improvements here and there would blow away the competition. Especially when the competition costs about 10 time more.

      Apple, Apps, GPS, iPhone, Mobile

      Apple’s iMac is Updated and Affordable

      March 4, 2009 /

      Apple iMac

      Exciting news out of Cupertino yesterday. The iMac, Mac mini, and Mac Pro were all updated with much improved all around specs. And surprisingly, at affordable prices. Top of the line hardware specs and affordability have been missing in Apple’s Mac line of products recently but we’ll get into that later. For now, let’s focus on the updated iMac.

      Here’s what Apple has to say about today’s developments:

      Available today, the new iMac line includes a 20-inch model for only $1,199 and the flagship 24-inch iMac which is priced more affordably than ever before. For the same $1,499 price as the previous generation 20-inch iMac, the new 24-inch iMac delivers a 30 percent larger display, twice the memory and twice the storage. It features the Intel Core 2 Duo processor running at speeds up to 3.06 GHz, 4GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 memory, a 640GB or 1TB Serial ATA hard drive, and several options for graphics processors.

      Now that’s music to my ears.

      My biggest complaint about Apple over the last few years is that the hardware specs didn’t live up to the price. I know, I know… you get a solid operating system and virus free computer. And yes, I know that “everything just works.” But realistically, when compared to a PC with similar hardware specs, the difference in price for a Mac was substantial. Well, not any more.

      Take the baseline 24-inch, 2.66GHz iMac. For $1499 you get 4GB of 1066MHz DDR SDRAM and 640GB of storage to go along with OS X and iLife ’09. Up the memory to 1 TB and add iWork ’09 and you’re out the door at $1648. Not bad at all.

      All-in-all I can definitely say I am proud of Apple today. While $1500 may not be affordable for every family, what you are getting for the money is well worth it. You can now safely buy an iMac knowing that you got a machine with very strong hardware specs, at a fair price.

      Apple, Computers, News

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