Total Number of Ratings: 8
Murmur - Episode #6 - Go Go Gadget Everything!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009 10:44 AM
September 1, 2009 - This week Murmur staffers Ron Richards, Paul Montgomery, Jim Mroczkowski, and Kelly Stephenson thought it would be fun to delve into the technology department. Don't rush off just yet. They're not hacking anything or rewriting any code. They just want to talk about the technology we tuck away in our fanny packs each and every day to do our each and every day activities.
Listen to the Podcast:
Really enjoyed this episode guys. As a profound gadget person (and avid Tweeter :) ), this hit home in a lot of ways. The cadence you all had would've hinted at long-term friendships, which is a rare thing when a group first get together to podcast. Kudos.
I'm torn on the Kindle, and am likely holding off on buying an e-Reader until we get color eink. Whereas I'm 100% fine with disposing of my DVD and CDs for a complete digital alternative, I still LOVE having comics, trades and books to hold and consume.
As someone decidedly amateur in my video recording needs, I've loved the new Flip HD. It's replaced my $1500 (or so) digital camcorder and I have it with me at most family functions. The ease-of-use, the ability to segment with a click of a button, and the plug-and-play are first rate. If I had one complaint, you already voiced it...the USB configuration is a little clunky. Particularly because it puts a lot of weight on the USB lever point if you don't prop the Flip up on something during connection.
Can't wait for the next gadget talk. I'm in the process of trying to completely re-do my home networking/entertainment processes. I want to have a 100% digital hub that incorporates all of my music, podcasts, movies, internet, video games. And have it all accessible from any TV or speaker set in the house. Lots of approaches to tackling the job, and I'm still figuring out how (and who) I want to do the job.
I almost skipped this episode b/c I'm not a big gadget person, but I'm glad I listened because it was such a great conversation. Congrats to Kelly on her first (I think?) podcast, and she has made me really want a Kindle!
Shoulda said: with all the money we spent on a video camera, the only videos I record now are done with my iPhone. It's teeny, it's always on hand, and it's good enough for YouTube. I rarely pick up the "real" camera at all now.
we did not steer towards the issue that even when we have the $200 less-quality-but-still-decent item, they can still get left behind in favor of something even cheaper/easier to deal with.
i have a fairly small digital camera and one of those ipods that holds an absurd amount of media, but i pretty much only take the iphone with me. there are lots of spontaneous pictures that don't get taken because the iphone can't handle it, but not enough to reinforce bringing something else along.
I'm enjoying the Kindle on my iPod touch, read a book or two already.
I will say that I do want to get a big deal e-reader, but I do love walking into use book stores and just pulling it wonderful smell.
I'm a total fanboy, but I find it a little disturbing that the PS3 is omitted from the (brief) price drop conversation. The 360 price drop is a direct response to the PS3's and the fact that people aren't aware of that doesn't bode well for Sony. I love my PS3 b/c as a gamer it meets all my gaming requirements and has blu-ray and hulu capabilities.
I'm aware of it for sure. I own a 40GB PS3 and love it, but I'm very jealous of anyone who picks up the slim model. It was just a brief tangent on price drops, so don't be too disturbed. It's on peoples' radars.
That said, I had no idea it had Hulu functionality. I should look into that.
Oh, also -- the segway video was shot on a FlipHD. It's a nice little gadget, though I could think of a few ways to improve the next version.
http://www.murmur.com/lifestyle/conor__joshs_segway_tour_of_gettysburg.html
One thing that wasn't mentioned in the twitter discussion is that -- as much as I enjoy it -- it's a service that really only serves a very limited group of people. It seems to be (mostly) for tech savvy folks between 25-45. Most young people I know only use Facebook and when I bring up Twitter they give me the same look that my mom does.
Not a criticism of Twitter, just an observation. It'll be interesting to see where its future lies.
I think Twitter also -- and this may be related -- only really serves a certain lifestyle. It works best if you can either spend a lot of time at your computer or if you have a mobile device with good functionality to check it all the time. I guess theoretically you could follow a small number of people and check it a couple times a day and still get that effect, but it usually seems that conversation moves so fast. I know I have a friend who was teaching in the classroom for a while so wasn't able to check messages for 8 or 9 hours at a time, and she got frustrated because she got left out of the conversations. Facebook is much more manageable for checking in once a day or so. (This is why I tend to use Twitter for my long-distance friends and blogosphere people, and facebook for my local friends and family. Except my parents, who are never allowed to use Faceboook.
The most important aspect of any gadget is that it accomplishes what it is primarily meant to do, i.e. a camera takes pictures or a phone makes calls. It's when the focus becomes the extra bells and whistles that things can get messy. Especially with "moms". You can't cater solely to the 'philes, and I think that the problem is that these devices are designed and developed by 'philes for review by 'philes. That could be why devices have become increasingly complex and why there seems to be a push back to a more simple and easy to use functionality.
I'm in the same boat with Ron on the Blu-Ray thing. The jump from standard definition to high definition was well worth the financial investment. To my eyes I've yet to see anything out of Blu-Ray that is so much better than the images I get now to make it worth the upgrade.
I'm interested in the Kindle, or a Kindle-like device, but I need full color. I really do hope that the Mac Tablet is a reality. But I'm never giving up books. My goal is to have a huge library room someday. I want a ladder that runs on rails.
I learned a magic word when I heard about Blu Ray players: "upconversion." It's a hi-def thing that takes your low-def thing and adds defs to it! There's ground up unicorn horns in there, or somethin'. The future is here, and in the future products are so cool they enable you not to have to buy anything to use with them.
Yeah, I get that but, like, the difference between the DVDs I watch now and the Blu Rays I've seen isn't enough for me to buy a new player (not to mention the $35 price tag for movies). It's better but not THAT much better. For me, anyway. Then again, when I saw REVENGE OF THE SITH three times in one day, and one was in super sharp digital projection I registered no difference.
I get my blu-ray fix through my PS3 as opposed to a standalone blu ray player. I'm not a total gamer, but I do like the next gen games and the combination of game console and blu ray was too good to resist. I'm not a video expert, but it is a fetish for me. As Conor said, up-conversion to true HD isn't the massive leap that SD to HD was, but I do discern a difference. It's a silly premium, but I think it was a worthwhile investment. Watching movies like Sunshine and Speed Racer or even Lost on blu ray absolutely blows my mind. It's a hobby and I get a lot of joy out of the great picture quality.
The other thing is, while I do own a good number of blu-rays, I don't buy nearly as much as I did when I was getting dvds. Most of my blu-ray viewing is through Netflix. There's an additional blu ray fee, but it's not that bad. I'm happy with the upgrade.
i think a blue ray player is not too far in our future, if only because at some point it will come standard on some console we want to pick up.
I have a blu ray player on accident. When we moved, we wrote into the contract that the previous owners had to leave the plasma screen on the wall; they interpreted our request to mean "leave the TV and everything attached to it," which was just fine by me. The thing is, after coveting one of these gizmos for so long, I haven't even upgraded Netflix for blu ray discs. My DVDs are good enough.
This was the best episode by you guys yet. The previous ones had the tendency to feel a bit rushed, as you seemed to have a number of bullet points that you had to get through. This one felt much more free flowing and discussion based, which really made it a more pleasurable listening experience. You're all very interesting to just hear talking about subjects that interest you.
Having these article spotlights is a good idea. I liked that it allowed Jim to give some highlights of his article for those that missed it, then allow everyone to chime in with their experiences. While the comments section beneath each article is a fine addition, there is something to be said for organic conversation. Good stuff.
And keep these user article spotlights, when you can. I could see this really helping foster the community on here.
Oh, and it was great to hear your voice, Kelly. :)
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The Apple tablet is due to be released next year. I have seen the components that handle the power management for this awesome gadget.