As a mobile app developing company, we receive an overwhelming number of social network requests. For each potential client, our sales team navigates through their functionality requests and end up illustrating the same picture every time– Facebook. Of course not every social network request demands all of Facebook’s functionality, but a majority of potential clients ask for groups/networks, likes, friend requests, chat and the infamous ‘wall’. Consumers see Facebook as a standard, something that their social network idea needs to live up to and meet. At the same time, they feel that they need to prevail and ‘outdo’ the Facebook standard by combining features from other major social software applications such as Skype. What eventually unfolds, is a super giant social network that encompasses parts of other social sites with it’s own unique branding.
What I’d like to ask consumers who fall down this social network disaster path is why are you trying to compete with the best? Why are you trying to build a mega social network that will most likely be seen to consumers as what it is: A Facebook Wanna Be. What you should be ask yourself is what can I do that has the impact of Facebook? The answer may not be a social network, in fact, it may be a simple widget that helps consumers connect to their local library or on a larger scale, an app that lets you purchase items from a variety of sites all at once. What is something that hasn’t already been developed? Find that hole and that niche, because that’s exactly what the best sites did; that’s what Facebook did.
Music lovers and online bloggers may have already stumbled upon this in their online readers, but for those of you who haven’t had the chance, Indie rock band “OK Go’s” new single “All is Not Lost” will leave you flabbergasted.
As expected, “OK Go” is notorious for their unusual, eccentric videos, but this time I think they’ve really outdone themselves. No it’s not another video of workout equipment or a crazy machine, but using the future of the internet: HTML 5. With the aid of the Pilobolus dance troupe and Google, “OK Go” transformed their message through their movements, which consisted primarily of their feet. The HTML 5 comes into play about a minute through when you notice your screen starting to split into a series of windows. Throughout the video, viewers will see their feet and bodies spell letters that form words to the song.
But they didn’t stop there; they also made the video interactive. By visiting their site for the single, users can write their own custom messages and see them displayed during the video. Impossible? See for yourself: OK Go-All is Not Lost
This HTML 5 music phenomenon has been adopted by several other artists, such as “Arcade Fire” and “Rome“. Will we see more artists board the HTML 5 train, I sure hope so! Nothing better than seeing music marry with technology.
Google is set to bring Near Field Communication technology to the United States this year. Google is testing a mobile NFC payment system in New York and San Francisco that will rollout in the upcoming months. Google is installing hundreds of VeriFone Near Field Communication readers. Google is planning to bring all your finances, gift cards, store cards and coupons to your phone using this NFC technology. With this technology, users can pay by simply waving your phone across readers. Apple is considering incorporating iTunes as a payment option. The details are still being ironed out by VeriFone and Google.
If you follow both iPad 2 and iPhone 5 news, then you’ll notice a prevailing trend in the rumor mill: tech analysts assume that what has appeared on the new iPad 2 is a foreshadowing of what to expect on the up-coming iPhone 5. You may recall that, when the iPad first debuted in 2010, many critics panned the tablet as little more than an oversized iPhone. Perhaps that’s why there seems to be a tendency to assume that the technologies of the iPad and iPhone are somehow inextricably linked.
It is true that some of the iPhone 4 features are showing up on the iPad 2, the primary one being the front-facing camera. But it’s overly simplified to assume that the iPhone and iPad cross-pollinate each other when it comes to new features. The fact is, Apple finds itself in two very different positions within the marketplace when it comes to the iPad 2 and soon-to-be iPhone 5, and this difference is ultimately what drives the technologies forward.
Market Dominance Versus A Horse Race
As Steve Jobs clearly stated in his iPad 2 announcement, the iPad dominates the tablet market. It did so decidedly in 2010 and will continue to do so in 2011. While some have indicated that Apple will see its market share erode steadily over the next five years, there is no doubt that the iPad 2 will continue to be the product leader in the tablet market.
Because of this, Apple didn’t need to do much to the iPad 2; they were able to do a simple refresh and add some nice touches (such as the front-facing camera, thinner design, andA5 chip) to keep the competition in the rear-view mirror. To be sure, Apple has kept other advancements for their tablet, such as higher/different screen resolutions, the inclusion of flash technology, and some kind of next-generation gesture control, as cards to be played on another iteration of the iPad.
But with the iPhone 5, it’s going to be a different story.
ABC Action news Tampa visited Momentum Mobile’s Tampa headquarters this morning to get the scoop on the new iPad 2. Just hours before Apple’s revealing of the new iPad, the Action News team sat down with Momentum CEO, Chris Young, in order to get his thoughts on the tablet. See the full interview here: http://www.abcactionnews.com/dpp/news/local_news/ipad-2-scoop
The smart people of Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a portable device that works with smartphones to help diagnose cancerous tissues. The device is still in the early testing stages, but they have successfully diagnosed 48 of 50 patients. The process takes about an hour and is expected to cost around $200. This makes the device affordable and can be distributed nationally to even the smallest of clinics. Researchers say the next step is to customize the device to detect different types of cancer. In a few years, getting checked for cancer can be as easy as visiting your family physician. Imagine all the lives potentially saved by early detection with a smartphone.
I’m a big fan of Windows Phone Series 7, though I don’t own one. I want Microsoft to succeed as I think the big two (iOS & Android; sorry Blackberry) can only get better with a company like Microsoft pushing them. I’ve had a long relationship with Microsoft handheld’s and still have my HP IPaq 1935 in a box. Its dead…but I still have it.
I’m worried about it though. If there is one thing Microsoft isn’t good at its Marketing their products. I remember laughing at the first iPod and saying my iPaq can do so much more — but it was only sold as a PIM device.
Over the holidays, I went into Best Buy and there was no point-of-sale for Windows Phone 7. I asked the Dept. Manager and he shrugged his shoulders and gestured “over there” and went back to cranking out orders for iPhone4′s. There was no demo stations set up like the Blackberry, Android, and iPhone marketing and demo sets.
Sure, Windows Phone Series 7 was unproven, but it was kind of telling. Let’s not forget that this is Microsoft we are talking about…the have the clout, they have the budget, and they have the skill. They just don’t have the respect or reach.
I was hoping that Nokia adopting Windows Phone Series 7 en-masse would get them the mobile phone reach and respect; but then reports started turning up that the very first Windows Phone Series 7 update (which updated the updater) was bricking some phones. That’s not something you want and with some strong rivals with Apple and Google (okay…and Research In Motion) already owning the market you don’t want any bad press or failure (KIN, anyone?).
I hope Microsoft will take it in stride, and make the WPS7 the contender fans say it is. I want a viable alternative to the current devices.
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