HOUR 3:
Tech News & Commentary
Laura in Spokane, Washington listening on 840 KMAX asked: “I’d like to know if there is a way to use an iPhone type device with dialup by utilizing Wi-Fi areas off-site?”
First of all, any Wi-Fi hotspots you connect to will be using a broadband connection, not dialup. I guess, in theory, it would be possible to put a wireless router on a dial-up connection, but we’ve not heard of anyone doing that. It’s just not practical.
Now, If what you mean by “utilizing Wi-Fi areas off-site” is “Will you be able to connect to Wi-Fi hotspots?” then, yes. Many places, you can connect to for free, like many coffee shops, hotels, fast food restaurants. Some others, like Airports, you have to pay for a Wi-Fi connection. Some places have free wi-fi, but only after you make a purchase. Like some fast food restaurants and coffee shops that print a wi-fi code on your receipt.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
“Into
Gaming Update” Weekly Feature with Mark Lautenschlager
GROUP DISCUSSION: Is Google+ better than Facebook?
Mark shares his experiences with the Google+ Beta with the team.
Ellen in San Antonio, Texas listening online asked: “My daughter in law just went back to college and is a struggling student, wife and mother of 2+.
Her birthday is coming up in August and we are trying to decided which device to get her for her birthday.
I have a Kindle which I love, my husband has a Nook which he loves. So which one is best for a student?”
That’s a good question Ellen, and one that is hard to give a definite answer for. Until just recently, we would have said that the Amazon Kindle is clearly the better device for reading books, while the Barnes & Noble Nook was the better product for color publications like magazines.
However, Barnes & Noble has recently launched an updated version of the Nook which is smaller, lighter, with an E Ink monochrome screen like the Kindle has, priced at $139, which is the same price as the third generation Kindle. That means Barnes & Noble now has both the 7″ Nook Color and the 6″ Nook.
Our colleagues at Consumer Reports recently reported in their feature on our show that they rated the new monochrome Nook slightly higher than the Amazon Kindle, for the first time ever. The difference however was extremely slight, and really means the two products are very evenly matched. Amazon has made this even more of an even race by announcing that a 7″ Kindle Color will be available shortly.
In other words, Amazon and Barnes & Noble are matching each other in quality, features, and price. It’s really the closest comparison we can think of in consumer technology. Amazon does have the leg up in 3G support. If you want a reader that can download new books without needing to be in a Wi-Fi hotspot, only the Kindle offers that. However, we don’t honestly see this as a big deal. How many books will you be downloading when you’re not near Wi-Fi, really?
Both Amazon and Barnes & Noble are now offering textbook rentals, which is excellent for students. You may want to compare what textbooks are available through each and see which matches your daughter’s needs better. Both Amazon and Barnes & Noble offer software versions for every computer brand and operating system, to let you access your books on a larger device, if you have one.
The Nook Color is a more traditional Android tablet, with a Nook Store that sells apps, but they do not allow you to access the general Android Market, so you’re locked pretty tightly in to Barnes & Noble. But at $249, it’s a very low cost 7″ color Android tablet.
While we will see a Kindle Color this year, we won’t see it in time for that August birthday.
We know that’s a lot of information to process, but we want to be careful that we give you what you need to make an informed decision. The bottom line is, you won’t go wrong with either product, as they are so closely matched in size, performance, features, and price. If you want to get her a color tablet, but you can’t afford that, then a Nook Color is the next best thing. It’s a good eReader, it’s an okay Android tablet, and it can at least run the apps that Barnes & Noble sells in their Nook Store. It’s web browser is certainly better than its monochrome cousin.
If you want a monochrome reader then it really is a toss-up, and we encourage you to make the decision based on investigating which one gives you better access to the textbooks she will be using in school.
Hope this has helped!
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
Shelley in Jefferson City, Missouri listening on KLIK 1240 AM asked: “I was trying to download a couple of pictures that a family member emailed to me and when I couldn’t open them, I accidentally deleted my photo program (iPhoto) on my iMac. It had thousands of my pictures from my vacations, adventures and milestones that I’d love to try and recover. I have a Mac OS X version 10.1.5 with a Power PC G3 Processor and 256 MB of memory.
Is there any way to get my iPhoto back?”
You seem to have a very old iMac running OS X 10.1.5 and it doesn’t have “Time Machine Backup” on it. That was feature that was added with Leopard (OS X 10.5). If you did have it, it would make your photo recovery a lot easier. So, unless you had a separate backup of files on your computer, you may not be able to restore or find your old pictures. Once you restore iPhoto from the original installation discs, your iPhoto Library will be replaced.
I wonder if iPhoto was completely removed. Have you searched for it everywhere? We ask because you didn’t specify how it got deleted. It could’ve been the icon that was deleted, but not the entire application and library. You can search your computer for “iPhoto”.
Since you have a very old version of Mac OS 10, you don’t have “Spotlight”, a search utility that would make finding iPhoto a lot easier, but you should still have Sherlock. To search for iPhoto using Sherlock open a Finder window, click on “File” at the top of the screen, and then on “Find”, and that should open a search window, make sure to search both for “iPhoto” and for “jpg” since your pictures may still be there even if you did delete iPhoto.
If a similar problem happens to a Mac running OS X 10.3 or higher, there may be a software program you can try. It’s called “iPhoto Recovery”. It analyzes any affected media and will restore the lost, missing and deleted digital photos in a secure location. iPhoto Recovery is available online for less than $100.
Unfortunately, we can’t give you an exact answer. We’d have to in front of your computer to help you. If you have an Apple Store nearby, try seeing their Genius Bar specialists.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
Guests in this hour:
Bill Kirk, Co-Founder & CEO – Weather Trends International
Can we predict the weather a year in advance? Apparently, there’s an app for that.
“IFA History Feature” brought to you by Messe-Berlin
To bring color to the TV, new technologies had to be invented. The German Werner Flechsig in 1938 got a first patent for a stripe mask, separating red, green and blue with filters. That was the basis for color tubes, but it came too early. Nine years later in 1947, after World War 2, RCA developed a first prototype with such a shadow mask, the screen was no bigger than a postcard. In 1954, finally the market started in the United States with a round tube about 22 inches. BBC in the UK and Russian television began trials with color television. IFA was, of course, the showcase for these innovations as well.
That’s this week’s IFA Update brought to you by Messe-Berlin. Be sure to visit IFA-Berlin.com.
Tim from Decatur, Illinois listening on 100.9 FM asked: “Hi Dave, I’m looking for a Bluetooth stereo device that I can hook up to my stock radio in my car. Thanks.”
There are a few products out there that you can look at. What you really need is a Bluetooth receiver that has an FM transmitter built-into it. Our team has uncovered one that will do just what you are looking for.
The Motorokr T505 Bluetooth, makes calls hands free and allows you to listen to your tunes with features like echo/noise reductions and loudness control. The Bluetooth technology will stream your music or favorite talk show, such as into tomorrow right from your phone or MP3 player to the Motorokr T505. The digital FM transmitter let’s you make and take calls and your music will pause while you’ll take your calls.
The station finder technology searches the FM dial for you to find the best station to transmit to. Press a button and station finder will find and announce the best FM station for you to tune to. This portable solution clips to the visor, so that it can be taken from car to car.
The Motorola Motorokr T505 is available online for about $53.
Tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast for more details.
Listener Willie asked: “What do you guys think about AT&T not supplying their customers with 4G on their iPhone 4 phones? Still, they say they are the best and the fastest for internet while talking at the same time!”
This one’s not really on AT&T, Apple doesn’t make an iPhone that can achieve 4G speeds… then again AT&T’s can now technically call their speed 4G, but it’s really what they used to call “enhanced 3G”…
Regardless of AT&Ts half truths though, Apple just doesn’t make an iPhone that can use 4G networks yet, so for now, neither AT&T nor anyone else will be able to offer iPhone 4 users 4G speeds simply because the hardware isn’t there.
Tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast for more details.
If you have any questions about any of this week’s show info,
please email us here.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Microsoft: Copies of Street & Trips Software with GPS receiver
VSO Software: Copies of Convert-X-to-DVD 4 – Lets you convert videos to DVD and watch on any DVD player.
wEASEL: Several wEASEL Easel Smartphone Stand with Hanging Loop in Black or White