Monthly Archives: November 2009

Podcast 38: Android App Recommendations discussion with Frank McPherson

In Podcast 38 Windows Mobile expert, and now Android enthusiast/expert, Frank McPherson joins me once again to “talk Android”. The focus of this 31 minute 7 second long podcast is Android app recommendations. I also took the opportunity to ask Frank to describe the process of purchasing an app from the Android market. We discussed the following apps:

Frank’s paid app recommendations:
– DoggCatcher ($9.99) podcasting client
– Advanced Task Manager (99 cents)

Frank’s free app recommendations:
– Glympse location sharing
– Sherpa location discovery

Todd’s free app recommendations:
– Bonsai Blast game
– Weather Channel
– WiFi Analyzer

Finally, Frank and I discussed our Android app wish list.

You can find Frank’s website at: http://frankmcpherson.com

– You can listen to the podcast right now from your web browser by using the embedded player above.
– You can also subscribe to the podcast in iTunes or this RSS feed.
– You can also point your smartphone’s browser at mobiletoday.podbean.com to listen to or download the MP3 file over the air to your phone.

People who have never seen a netbook should not write op-eds about them

I think it was Harlan Ellison who said: Everyone is entitlted to an INFORMED opinion. So, while I disagree with this TechRepublic article subject line, I figured it was worth taking a look at…

Netbooks are dead. Long live the notebook

That was the case until I read its first sentence: Netbooks — those underpowered mini laptops with 7-inch screens and unusable little keyboards — are a dying fad. Say what? A 7-inch screen? There hasn’t been a mainstream netbook with a 7-inch screen since the first generation Asus (the Eee PC 701) that introduced the netbook concept in 2007. Quite honestly, I stopped reading the article at that point. The standard netbook LCD screen is 10.1 inches these days with a smattering of models with 9-inch displays (like the touchscreen Asus Eee PC T91MT I recently bought).

HTC Droid Eris Initial Impressions from Friend/Co-worker (video)

Daniel Inoshita, a friend and co-worker, bought an HTC Droid Eris from Verizon. I sat down a few minutes with him to get his initial impressions after having the phone for just a few hours.

I apologize for the low sound volume during the initial minute of the conversation. I used a Touch Pro2 to record the video and forgot how unidirectional its microphone is (usually a very good thing). I used volume leveling to try to even out the volume post-hoc as well as possible. One important item that may be difficult to hear is Daniel’s explanation of the Droid Eris’ price. It is $199 – $100 rebate – another $50 for current Verizon Wireless customers past their previous two-year contract point.