Tag: iPod

Why We Live Longer Today Then People Did 100 Years Or More Ago, Campbell Soup K-Cups For Keurig & Apple’s Upcoming iOS7 Upgrade For Mobile Devices

Linda Reimer

Why We Live Longer Today Then People Did 100 Years Or More Ago: Slate offers an interesting article on why people live longer today than they did in the past. We forget that life expectancy 100 years or more ago was about 40 and now it is just about twice that – and the article which is amusingly titled “Why Are You Not Dead Yet?” casts a light on just the reasons why people are surviving things that used to kill people in ages past – things like being cursed of a condition or disease by modern medicine or surviving an accident that would have killed someone a century ago. The article is a bit morbid in the subject it focuses on but is fascinating none-the-less!

Here’s the link:

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science_of_longevity/2013/09/life_expectancy_history_public_health_and_medical_advances_that_lead_to.html

Campbell Soup K-Cups For Keurig: For those persons who own a Keurig Coffeemaker this next item will come as no surprise! Campbell’s Soup has just announced it is launching a new series of soup K-Cups for Keurig Coffee Makers! We have a Keurig Coffee Maker at the library and I own one myself and it is a top notch machine for brewing coffee but it also allows you to quickly access hot water for tea or instant soup sans any coffee after taste – I use the Keurig I have at home more for brewing green tea with tea bags than for brewing coffee. And now the Campbell Soup company has announced it will shortly beign selling soup K-Cups for Keurig Coffee Makers! Ahh, just what we’ll need on those chilly fall and winter lunch breaks – a steaming cup of easy to make soup to go along with our sandwiches and cups of coffee!

Here’s the link to the abc News article on the new soup K-Cups:

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/campbell-offer-cup-soups-coffee-brewers-20156566

Apple’s Upcoming iOS7 Upgrade For Mobile Devices: This fall Apple will be coming out with a software upgrade for its mobile devices (think iPhones, iPads & iPods). And this new software, which is rumored to be quite different that previous iOS versions will probably be unveiled at Apple’s press event on September 10th. So it is timely that the USA Today has offered an article and video showing off some of the new looks and aspects of the new software – iOS 7:

Here’s the link the combo video/article:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/columnist/talkingtech/2013/09/04/ios7-released-later-this-month/2761477/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Choi, Candice. (2013, September 4). Campbell K-Cups to Make Keurig Into Soup Machine. abc NEWS. Online. Accessed September 5, 2013, http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/campbell-offer-cup-soups-coffee-brewers-20156566

Graham, Jefferson. (2013, September 5). Own an Apple device? Get ready for iOS 7. USA Today. Online. Accessed September 5, 2013, http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/columnist/talkingtech/2013/09/04/ios7-released-later-this-month/2761477/

Helmuth, Laura. (2013, September 5). Why Are you Not Dead Yet? Life expectancy doubled in the past 150 years. Here’s why. Slate. Online. Accessed September 5, 2013, http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science_of_longevity/2013/09/life_expectancy_history_public_health_and_medical_advances_that_lead_to.html

Tablets Gaining in Popularity & iPod Touch Gateway to Apple Product Adoption

Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, I’ve got two related tech subjects to bring to your attention today! The first subject is the growing adoption of tablets like the iPad, Galaxy Tab and Google Nexus 7 and the second, and related article, is on the subject of how purchasing an iPod Touch can be a gateway to purchasing additional Apple products.

On The Growing Adoption of Tablets: According to the tech site ZDNET one in four tablet owners say that their tablet is now their primary computer. And that fact is not surprising considering that PC sales are falling and tablet sales are growing by leaps and bounds. And I think tablet adoption makes sense for many, many people. Consider that many people only need to use a computer to do light web browsing and send email and tablets are ideal for that! And a tablet is also a Wi-Fi connecting device that can be easily picked up and carried with you which of course is not something you can do with a PC!

For more information click on the following link to access the ZDNET article titled 1 in 4 tablet owners say it is now their primary computer:

http://www.zdnet.com/1-in-4-tablet-owners-say-it-is-now-their-primary-computer-7000004770/

iPod Touch Gateway to Apple Product Adoption: If you follow the mainstream news a part of your day as I do you couldn’t have missed the fact that Apple introduced its new iPhone – the iPhone 5 last week. And tech fan that I am I’m going to publically disclose something non-tech about myself right now. As much as I love Apple products I have never owned an iPhone and I’m not going to by buying the iPhone 5 either. And in answer to the obvious question of “Why not?” it is because of cost. Oh, not the initially cost of the phone one can obtain an iPhone for the reasonable smartphone price of $199 with a cellular contract – my objection is to the price of that aforementioned cellular contract. Now of course I work in a public library surrounded by wired phones each day and I live in a house that is just across town from the library so I don’t need a cell phone to use in my working life*

Having said all of that I do have a device that is very much like an iPhone. It has all the iPhone capabilities except the ability to make cellular phone calls. You can make internet phone calls including Skype calls with it but you have to be in range of a Wi-Fi network. And of course the device I have is an iPod Touch. Now Apple also announced a new iPod Touch (5th generation model) on the same day that it announced the iPhone 5. And the new iPod touch which has a 4” Retina Display and more storage by far than my old 8 GB iPod touch – that is a device I will be buying as soon as it is released in October!

And you might wonder what any of that has to do, specifically, with people purchasing the iPod Touch and then that being a gateway to purchasing additional Apple products…And my answer to that is that I can clearly see why buying an iPod Touch could eventually lead someone to buy more Apple products.

Purchasing an iPod Touch opens up the Internet connected world to a person in a way that a PC really doesn’t. You can use an iPod Touch anywhere you have an Internet connection which is in most restaurants (local ones include McDonalds, Bob Evans & The Central), hotels, in many grocery stores (like Wegmans) and other places of business and you can set it up to be able to access your email, take photos, play your favorite app games, read free library e-books (you don’t need Internet connectivity either once you’ve downloaded the e-book to your iPod), listen to music, listen to audio books, watch videos and do many other things that honestly you can all do on a PC today at least not in the same way… and you can put an iPod in your pocket or purse and easily take it with you!

And then there is the money factor – an iPod Touch is of course a Wi-Fi only device so there is no monthly contract involved. You purchase an iPod Touch and that is it as far as shelling out money for that specific device goes. Granted if you don’t have Wi-Fi set up at home (which is easy to do by the way if you have wired Internet access) then you need to go somewhere else to use Wi-Fi but as I mentioned most restaurants, public libraries and other places of business that people congregate (coffee houses like Starbucks or Barnes & Noble come to mind to) – as increasingly people expect to be able to access Wi-Fi wherever they go.

And then there is the price of the device itself. iPod Touch costs a reasonable price – right now you can buy the 8 GB 4th generation model from Best Buy for $179 or the 16 GB 4th generation version for $199; and the new and improved iPod Touch 5 (which has more bells and whistles) will come in six colors and two storage sizes a 32 GB version for $299 or a 64 GB model for $399 (today the Best Buy site has that 64 GB model listed as available for pre-order for $329)

And as a final thought I think many people who buy an iPod Touch and see what they can really do with it – which is a lot! – they then think “Hmmm, this is a great device but a larger screen would be nice too…and then the upgrade to an iPad which of course has a 9.7” screen. And the entry level iPad (the 2nd generation model) can be purchased for $399. And then if you’re like me and you want a larger screen still – you might just purchase an iMac as those 21.5” and 27” iMac screens are great!

And here the link to the article that inspired me to write glowingly about the iPod Touch – it too is from the ZDNET site and is called The iPod Touch is a Gateway Drug:

http://www.zdnet.com/the-ipod-touch-is-a-gateway-drug-7000004745/

Have a great day everyone!

Linda R.

* I do in fact have a very simple smartphone – it is a Tracfone Samsung LG 800 – a touch screen smartphone. A very basic smart phone to be sure but it only costs me $20 four times a year to have it and it works for me for the few times a year I use it!

iPhone 5 & New iPod Touch & Nano

Linda Reimer

And now that today really is Wednesday I can say…Apple introduced the iPhone 5 today and also offered a look at a new iPod Touch and Nano!

The new iPhone 5 is half an inch larger than previous iPhone models with a 4” Retina Display.  The iPhone 5 also features a faster chip, extra microphones, new camera features and a smaller dock connector. The iPhone 5 will be available in black or white and in three sizes: 16GB for $199, 32GB for $299 and 64GB for $399. It will go on sale on September 21.

The new iPod Touch will also offer a 4” Retina Display and all the non-cell phone bells and whistles that are included with the iPhone 5. Additionally of note, the new iPod Touch will be available in the following colors:  silver, black, red, yellow or blue. You’ll be able to pre-order the new iPod Touch via Apple’s website starting Thursday, September 14 and you’ll be able to buy a 32GB model for $299 or a 64GB model for $399.

Both the iPhone 5 and the new iPod Touch will feature Apple’s iOS 6 which includes a number of new features like a new maps app, updated Siri functionality and the ability to do video chatting via FaceTime on 3G networks.

Apple has also updated its iPod Nano to offer a 16 GB player with 2.5” touch screen that supports widescreen video and a new home button. The Nano will be available in white, purple, black, blue, green, yellow or pink/red and will, like the iPod Touch, be available for pre-order this Thursday.

And as you might imagine there are tons of news stories online regarding the iPhone 5 and the new iPods and related new features – here are two:

1. A CNET overview of the iPhone 5 found at:

http://www.cnet.com/iphone-5/

2. A Macworld article titled Apple Shows Off iPod Touch Nano Updates that offers more information on the new and improved iPod Touch and iPod Nano found at:

http://www.macworld.com/article/1168525/apple_shows_off_ipod_touch_nano_updates.html

And of course you can get information to straight from the horse’s mouth as it were – via the Apple website found at: http://www.apple.com/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

 

Apple Fans Put September 12 On Their Calendars & Machine To Machine Communication

Linda Reimer

Apple Fans Put September 12 On Their Calendars: CNET is reporting what they describe as a credible rumor that Apple will unveil the iPhone 5 and an iPad Mini on September 12. This same report indicates that Apple may also unveil a new iPod Touch on September 12 and that the iPhone 5 will go on sale on September 21.

The article, titled Apple Reported to Unveil iPhone 5, iPad Mini on September 12 can be accessed by clicking on this link:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57482033-37/apple-reportedly-to-unveil-iphone-5-ipad-mini-on-sept-12/

Machine To Machine Communication: In our high tech age machines have begun to talk to each other in earnest via the Internet. Machines have been communicating with each other in a minor way for two decades; however, we are at the cusp of a revolution that will make the process of machines talking to each other and reporting that information to other machines a ubiquitous one.

Current examples of this technology include digital utility meters which transmit meter readings to computers at utility companies and the refrigeration trucks of commercial food sellers who deliver their products to consumer’s homes – the company can ensure the temperature of the food is kept at a constant temperature because the computer system in the trucks relays temperature information to the computer system in the home office thus ensuring that adjustments are made, if necessary, to keep the food in the truck chilled to the appropriate temperature. However, refrigeration trucks and utility meters are only the tip of the ice burg. Within ten years it is expected that most automobiles produced will have built in machine activated communication technology so if you’re in a car accident the computer system in your car will communication will the computer system at the local police, hospital and ambulance offices to send you assistance in the same minute the accident occurs. And in the future it is expected that this technology will branch out and control things like opening and closing the windows of a building based upon the temperature, humidity and time of day – so machine to machine communication is indeed likely to make a huge impact in our lives in the near future. The New York Times offers an article today on just this subject, it is titled Talk to Me, One Machine Said to the Other and if offers a more in-depth analysis of this expanding communication technology – here’s the link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/30/technology/talk-to-me-one-machine-said-to-the-other.html?_r=1&ref=technology

Linda R.