Tag: iPhone

Coffee Talk #65: I Hate Luke Wilson’s AT&T Commercials

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the curse of the Los Angeles Clippers, what the hell was inside Chewbacca’s bandolier, or what you can do to help out Haiti, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I’m tired of seeing Luke Wilson in those crappy AT&T commercials. Most of you know that I detest AT&T Wireless. Seeing Wilson in commercials for the company makes me think less of him. He’s annoying. The message he’s conveying isn’t accurate. And most importantly, his nose isn’t nearly as funny as his brother’s. Having said that, the commercials did get me thinking about the features AT&T users like to boast about and how little they matter to me.

The first one is the ability to talk and web surf at the same time. Due to the limitations of CDMA, this can’t be done on Sprint and Verizon. My phone is capable of this feature and I’ve never used it. Perhaps it’s my inability to multitask or maybe I’m being overly courteous (it’s rude to web browse while talking to someone!), but I really don’t care about this feature. The only time I can see it being handy is when talking to a friend and using Google Maps to help him or her with directions.

Iphone users love to talk about how multitouch is a huge feature that makes their phone superior to anything in the known universe. Again, I just don’t care. Pinch-to-zoom isn’t that useful to me. I’m perfectly happy to scroll to the area I want to see and double tap. Maybe, I’m just weird with how I use my (Sim-less) iPhone, but that’s how it is. One area where multitouch clearly helps is with the virtual keyboard, but I really rather have a physical keyboard so this isn’t a big deal to me.

I know a lot of people will disagree with me on the usefulness of the two aforementioned features, but I wanted to see if they’re important to you. Also, I wanted to see if you also think Luke Wilson is the inferior Wilson brother. Discuss!

Hironobu Sakaguchi Working on iPhone Game

Mistwalker’s Hironobu Sakaguchi — you know, the guy who helped create Final Fantasy — revealed that he’s working on an iPhone game that will be out shortly. Wishing all of his fans a happy 2010, Sakaguchi wrote:

“Oh, by the way, We are also working on a project for iPhone. This should be released soon as well.”

An iPhone game by Sakaguchi?!? I’m totally down!

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(Not a) PSA: Best Buy Giving Away Free TweetDeck App

In one of the boldest marketing moves I’ve seen all decade, Best Buy is giving away the excellent TweetDeck application for free! Of course the application is free to begin with, but maybe some of Best Buy’s customers don’t know that and will fall for this lame “deal”. The Consumerist has reported:

They’re offering an amazing deal this week — buy a CD from certain Interscope musicians, and you can download Tweetdeck for iPhone absolutely free. Which would be a very nice deal if Tweetdeck weren’t already free.  Actually, the custom version of Tweetdeck comes pre-loaded following sixteen Interscope musicians, so it’s even less of a deal.

That’s funny and dickish of Best Buy at the same time. Oh marketers and their ploys….

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No Electronics on International Flights to the U.S.?

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is such a stupid and reactive organization. I hate it. I hate that because one idiot attempted to “shoe bomb” an airplane and another tried smuggle aboard liquid explosives, millions and millions of travelers have been inconvenienced. Instead of implementing better technology that screens passengers more effectively, the TSA makes idiotic rules that make travel more annoying and time consuming. I was reading about some of the new TSA actions on FlyerTalk‘s message boards and was shocked the learn that electronics are currently banned on international flights.

Due to that Yemeni-trained moron that tried to blow up Detroit — and yes, he’s absolutely a moron for targeting a city that has become so minor due to rampant crime and dreadful unemployment — it looks like electronics will not be allowed on international flights headed for U.S. destinations. That’s right, some travelers have reported that they were not allowed to use electronic devices at all during flights headed to America. What’s even more ridiculous is that the restriction isn’t limited to personal electronics — airlines were instructed to turn off their in-flight entertainment, leaving some passengers with nothing to do but sleep for 13+ hours.

Not being able to move during the last hour of a flight is irritating, but somewhat understandable. Further limiting carry-on items is also a drag. Not allowing the use of electronics at all?!? That’s just f&*ing stupid. Hopefully that’s only happening for a few more days and airplane travel will resume its moderately annoying ways shortly.

If anyone from the TSA is reading this, please know that you suck and you’re doing an awful job. If secretary of homeland security Janet Napolitano is reading this, please know that you sounded like an inept moron trying to explain the situation on MSNBC.

The only silver lining I can see is that print media might make a comeback. That’s assuming that the TSA doesn’t screw the airline industry more than it’s already screwed. *sigh* And I was just getting used to the joys of in-flight WiFi….

Unreal Engine for iPhone is Huge for the Future of Mobile Gaming

AnandTech’s Anand Lal Shimpi (who the hell names a site after himself…oh wait…never mind) was visited by Epic Games vice president Mark Rein and received a demo of Unreal Engine running for iPhone. Lal Shimpi wrote:

I got together with Mark Rein last week and he showed me an Unreal Engine 3 tech demo running on a 3rd generation iPod Touch. The same Unreal Engine 3 that powers Gears of War 2, running on an iPod Touch. The engine also works on the iPhone 3GS, and Mark tells me that we’ll see it on another mobile platform at CES (hmm…).

Obviously this is huge for the iPhone and iPod Touch platforms. Unreal Engine is the most popular in the business and Epic’s relationships — both with developers and publishers — are far reaching. Ultimately, I expect better looking games coming from numerous Unreal Engine licensees — companies that most enthusiast gamers are familiar with, as opposed to newcomers like ngmoco. Core gamers that are also iPhone and iPod Touch users (like many of you guys) are more likely to buy a game from a developer or publisher they know rather than a new company. Better looking games from the traditional players? I’m down! And I’m sure many of you will be too.

But wait, there’s more! Lal Shimpi also pointed out:

This isn’t a platform specific thing, it’s about bringing Unreal Engine 3 to the entire portable market.

Of course it is. Mobile processors like the Nvidia Tegra and Qualcomm Snapdragon are taking portable power to new heights. With great power comes great responsibility fantastic potential for mobile gaming. The next generation of mobile gaming devices will continue to push the envelope. Sony’s PlayStation Portable took portable graphics to a new level, but I don’t think it will be alone in the next generation. With Nintendo’s next handheld rumored to be Tegra powered, expect better looking mobile games on several platform.

Whether you’re talking about the next generation Nintendo handhelds and Sony PlayStation Portables or multifunction devices like the iPhone or Zune, mobile gaming is poised for a giant step. Naturally, to make great games you need great tools. This is where Unreal Engine comes in. For hundreds of developers, Unreal Engine is familiar and powerful. Having it work on mobile platforms like the iPhone is tremendous.

Then there’s Mark Rein’s involvement. The dude knows how to build relationships and sell his company’s engine. He’s so convincing that he once sold me time in a tanning salon. Okay, that’s not true, but I’m pretty sure he could do it.

Operation Chokehold Perspective Video

This YouTube video called “Viva la Chokehold” is totally funny, but it also shows how preposterous the movement is. By mixing in images of people waiting in lines for an iPhone with poignant pictures of civil rights struggles, the video entertains and puts things in the proper perspective. Yes, AT&T does suck for millions of people, but mobile phones are a luxury. There are people all over the world without homes, food, and basic human rights. Whether you find the video funny or thought provoking, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

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The Case for Operation Chokehold: AT&T Make$ More, $pend$ Le$$

AT and T FailAs some of you pointed out, Fake Steve Jobs’ Operation Chokehold could pose a danger to people that actually need their phones in case of an emergency. That’s completely understandable. Having  said that, I think more AT&T customers — specifically iPhone customers — should be pissed off at the company. Fake Steve added up the numbers and found that ever since the iPhone launched, AT&T has been cutting its expenses while its data revenue has soared:

Go look at their financial statements and open up the Financial Operations and Statistics Summary and look at capital expenditures over the past eight quarters. I’m no math whiz, but it looks like capex has gone down by about 30% over the time period. Scroll down a bit to the Wireless section and check out data revenues — they’re up 80% over the same period.

That’s just ridiculous. Where’ the nerd rage?!? Shouldn’t more AT&T customers be pissed off that they’re helping the company reach record numbers while a bare minimum has been done to improve network conditions? Shouldn’t you be up in arms that days after president & CEO of AT&T mobility Darth Vega Ralph de la Vega promised that the network would improve, it gloriously crashed in San Francisco?!?

Hmmmm, I might have to think my happening/not happening percentages on Operation Chokehold. I now believe there’s a 35 percent chance of something going down tomorrow.

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Coffee Talk #49: Favorite Games of 2009 #2 Civilization Revolution

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Danica Patrick making her NASCAR debut in California, Kelly Pavlik finally returning to boxing, or Bret “The Hitman” Hart signing a short-term deal with WWE, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As I mentioned last week, I’ll be counting down my five favorite games of 2009 in this week’s Coffee Talk columns and I’d love for you to join me! Let me know what your favorite games of the year were in the comments section. Remember, this isn’t about what games you thought were “best”. I want to know what you had the most fun with in 2009.

Civ iPhone

#2 Civilization Revolution — I picked up this iPhone game as an impulse purchase when it was on sale for $2.99. It quickly became one of the best gaming values I’ve had in years. There’s nothing fancy or complex about Civilization Revolution — it offers classic Civ gameplay on your iPhone…which is more than enough for hundreds of hours of entertainment.

Whether I’m flying across the Pacific Ocean, dealing with jet lag in Yokohama, or simply can’t sleep at home, it’s so easy to pass the time with this game. The only problem is that it’s so addictive that it’s easy to lose track of time and miss important things. Ha! That said, I’m amazed that I’ve gotten hundreds of hours of gameplay for only three bucks! Civilization Revolution rules!!!

Fake Steve Jobs Backs Off on Operation Chokehold

AT and T FailThe Operation Chokehold fake protest by Fake Steve Jobs has caused quite an uproar. With thousands of fans supporting the mission and dozens denouncing it on Facebook, Operation Chokehold has taken a life of its own. Fake Steve actually hopes that people do not to participate in the digital protest:

For what it’s worth, we don’t expect many people to participate in the flash mob. Even if all 1,600 fans of the Facebook group participate, that’s probably not enough people to crash a network. Is it?

Truth is, I hope not. I really don’t want to cause any actual harm to my fellow AT&T users. Quite the opposite — I feel as if we’re all caught in the same horrible prison, suffering alongside one another.

Earlier today, you guys and dolls debated the merits of this protest. There are fair points on both sides. AT&T’s service does suck and its customers should bring attention to its sucktitude, but people in emergency situations could suffer from the loss of coverage Operation Chokehold could cause.

After almost a day to think about Operation Chokehold, I’m leaning towards it being a non-event. Right now I’m 70/30 on anything noteworthy happening. What do you think? Will AT&T crash on Friday or not?

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Operation Chokehold: Nerds Will Attempt to Crash AT&T on 12/18

A group of (probably fake) engineers (that may or may not be) associated with Fake Steve Jobs plan to bring down AT&T’s mobile network on Friday, December 18. Consider this an indirect invitation to participate in mischief a warning if you’re an AT&T customer. Things might get funky if people take this mission seriously and/or it comes to life through various nerd networks. Here’s the memo:

Vader Chokehold

On Friday, December 18, at noon Pacific time, we will attempt to overwhelm the AT&T data network and bring it to its knees. The goal is to have every iPhone user (or as many as we can) turn on a data intensive app and run that app for one solid hour. Send the message to AT&T that we are sick of their substandard network and sick of their abusive comments. THe idea is we’ll create a digital flash mob. We’re calling it in Operation Chokehold. Join us and speak truth to power!

Most people are dismissing Operation Chokehold as a publicity stunt by Fake Steve Jobs, but there’s a good chance that it will take a life of its own. Fake Steve has a lot of real fans, many of whom are disgruntled AT&T customers. For its part, AT&T has acknowledged Operation Chokehold as a real threat and the company isn’t happy about it. An AT&T told Cult of Mac:

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