This week in iPad 2

Cold Open
Today on This Week in iPad, Jacob is back with his iPad 2! We're showing content creation apps on Planet of the Apps, and Andrea shows off Chicken Balls.

iPad Game of the Week!
This week, Andrea looks at a game called Chicken Balls HD, a game that looks similar to Angry Birds.

News

iPad 2 supply line broken
The parts that make up the new iPad come from all around the globe but there are a few that are manufactured in areas affected by last week's earthquake and tsunami. Key among them is the NAND flash memory chips the iPad uses for it's storage. Jacob theorized that Apple has all the supply they'd need since they've been ordering in massive volume. That said, if the plants remain offline for the longer term, say several months, then the supply chain might be disrupted.

You Can Help Out
If you want to help the efforts in Japan, all you need to do is text the word "Red Cross" to 90999 and your cellphone carrier will donate $10 to the Red Cross. Also, if you prefer to use Pay Pal, you can go here and choose which charities you'd like to support.

Time Warner offers iPad app
Time Warner cable recently began to offer an iPad app that lets users watch TV from their iPad.

Google TV remote comes to iOS
Google TV has released a version of their remote for iOS devices.

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But wait, there's MORE!
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iPad 2 review
While he was away, Jacob managed to get an iPad 2. He says that the new iPad is noticeably thinner and lighter, and the smart cover is a great accessory, but he's hesitant to recommend it for someone who already has an iPad and may be on the fence about it. Also he thinks the camera sucks. So bottom line, until he sees what the next version of iOS does with the hardware, if you don't have an iPad yet, get the iPad 2. If you do and are planning on selling your iPad 1, get it. If you don't want to sell your current iPad, you should probably wait.

Planet of the Apps

Content Creation

GarageBand
Jacob's first app this week is GarageBand. It allows users to create music on several virtual instruments and create up to 8 track recordings.

eBook Magic
Andrea's first app this week is eBook Magic an app that allows users to create scrapbooks on their iPad.

iMovie
Jacob's next app is iMovie. It works as advertised, and Jacob recommends it.

ArtRage
Andrea's final app this week is called ArtRage. She thinks it's too hard to use, and it's not intuitive at all. She thinks you should skip this one.

Winner:
Both Andrea and Jacob agree that GarageBand wins this week.

See you next week!

Redesign coming soon

When I set up my blog last year, I did so rather laissez-faire. Now I realize that I'm not happy with the way the blog looks, and I'm going to redesign the appearance from scratch. Look for it soon. kthxbai. :)

This Week in iPad Launch Extravaganza

Cold Open
Coming up on This Week in iPad, it's all about iPad 2!!!

Today, Andrea is hosting the show with special guest host Michelle Hummel. You can view more about Michelle here.

iPad Game of the Week
The game of the week this week comes from a favorite of Andrea's: Chillingo. Big Boss allows you to play the game as the boss and is very cute. Plus it's only $1.99 so it's well worth a look.

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You have a lot of options when you want to buy or transfer your domain. Some of them are confusing, and try to trick you into making additional purchases of features you don't need. Hover wants to change all that. It's simple, neat, clean, and they're trying to make purchasing a domain EASIER. The prices are clearly labeled and don't change, and there are even helpful video tutorials on the front page to help you make decisions that are best for you. They don't have a "hold" system at Hover HQ. If you call them, the phone rings until someone picks it up and talks to you! Also, private registration is included in the price, they're the only registrar offering that. And you can create your own nameservers and A records. For a 10% discount, use promo code WEEK. To check it out, and buy your first domain, go to http://week.hover.com Also, to transfer a domain to Hover and waive the normal $25 fee, just call them at (866) 731-6556 and mention our code WEEK.
But wait, there's MORE!
We are giving away 2 $50 iTunes gift cards and all you need to do to enter is email your receipt from Hover to ipad@thisweekin.com for a chance to win. You can enter as many times as you like, but each entry has to be a transfer. So if you have 10 domains you'd like to transfer, send us all 10 receipts, and you'll be entered 10 times!
Also, thank them on twitter @hover.

iPad 2!
The show airs live every Friday at 4:30 so the iPad hadn't launched while the show was running. Andrea and Michelle concentrated on the differences between the original, and the iPad 2, and the so called "smart covers". As an aside, both Andrea and Michelle agree that having an iPad is a bonus for impressing women. Guys, take note.

Planet of the Apps

Music Apps
Andrea featured the foxL personal speaker.

Air Jam
Michell's first app this week comes from Pioneer Electronics. It's called Air Jam and it allows users to wirelessly stream music directly form your iPad to Pioneer electronic equipment. The app is basically designed as a value add for people who have purchased Pioneer receivers.

Vevo HD
Andrea's first app this week is Vevo HD. The app does require WiFi to work properly, but it features much more than just music videos. You can find info about your favorite artist, see their Twitter feed, and even find their concert schedule, and even purchase tickets right from the app.

SXSW Go
Michelle's next app is a topical one. It's for the South by Southwest Music, Film, and Interactive Festival in Austin, TX. The app is called SXSW GO and it provides users the ability to explore the event, and find out what's happening at the event. Plus it's free.

Discovr
Andrea's last app this week is called Discovr. It helps users discover new music based on what they like now. It shows branches of bands and artists related to the artists you enter. And you can see any band you'd like. It's a great way to discover new music, and preview and buy right from the app.

Winner: Andrea and Michelle agree that Discovr wins this week.

As always, you can tweet us @TWiiPad and you can always email the show at ipad@thisweekin.com.

Thanks for watching and we'll see you next week!

The retail distribution strategy of Apple INC or No iPad for you

Economic theory states that in order for a sale to occur, there must be 3 factors: The seller must have product to sell and the buyer must be willing and able to purchase the product. I want an iPad 2. I have the money to purchase an iPad 2. But I do not have an iPad 2. And I'm unlikely to get one in the next week.

Why? Because Apple stores citywide(I'm in Las Vegas), are totally sold out. And the stores won't receive any more until Monday at the earliest. Now, I understand fully that demand for the iPad 2 would likely be at historically high levels for months on end, just like it did for the original. But this is different. When you know that based on prior history that the demand level at launch was be X, it's logical to imply that the demand for the next generation of the product will at least match X, market conditions being equal. So it's highly unlikely that the demand levels took Apple by surprise. From a manufacturing perspective, the factories in Shenzhen have been working 24/7 and Apple has locked up all the manufacturing capacity it needs. It also knows how to ship products in large volume.

Please let me make clear that I have no inside information about Apple, it's supply chain, or it's retail policies. Having said that, I think that the most plausible reason that Apple is delaying the roll out of the iPad is because they can. There exists a long and storied history of businesses that have flipped the script on the usual customer service dynamic. And have thrived in doing so. Basically, Apple has decided that they will sell these devices on their terms because they have a proven history that people will buy at whatever price Apple feels like selling. They have a product that people want and rather than sell them as fast as possible, they'd rather have a steady stream of profits. In other words, they'd rather have 3 or 4 very good quarters, than 1 fantastically amazing quarter, 2 very good quarters, and 1 ok quarter until the iPad 3 launches.(As an aside, Apple need not worry about the holday quarter. They'll do just fine without doing a new iPad until next year.) It's become akin to the Soup Nazi episode on Seinfeld.

While I can fully understand this logic in most places, this is Las Vegas. And they ran out a full 10 hours before the stores close. That means that for the next 10 hours people came in to the store, played with the demo iPad units, and fell in love with the product enough to buy it. How many scores of sales did they miss out on? This is a unique town. People come here from all over the planet to relax, have fun and do things they wouldn't dare at home. That's a major reason why I moved here. And yet, Apple, in their infinite wisdom decided to leave what could be tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table. There are few rules in sales, but one that is as old as time itself is you don't leave money on the table. Apple could've charged more for the iPad 2. Their policies would certainly indicate that was the goal. But Steve and friends instead decided to drastically limit the supply of their product, without the resultant increase in price. Why? Ultimately I don't know. But I do know it's very disheartening to go to the Apple store expecting to get a new iPad, only to have the young lady at the store say "No iPad for you!" And so there we leave this discussion. For now at least, no iPad for me. :(

If you like rants like this and would like them in slightly smaller doses, you can follow me on twitter. Thanks for reading, and feel free to comment.

This Week in iPad 2

Cold Open
Today on This Week in iPad, Lon Harris returns to review the Inception and The Dark Knight apps, we look at The Syndicate! HD in our game of the week, and something happened in San Francisco. Maybe you heard about it. All that and more on This Week in iPad.

Game of the Week!
This weeks game of the week is The Syndicate! HD a compulsion loop game along the lines of We Rule or Farmville. While Lon thinks the graphics are great, the game quickly becomes repetitive and the music is awful. It is free but the game play is designed to encourage in app purchase so buyer beware.

Ad

You have a lot of options when you want to buy or transfer your domain. Some of them are confusing, and try to trick you into making additional purchases of features you don't need. Hover wants to change all that. It's simple, neat, clean, and it's trying to make purchasing a domain EASIER. The prices are clearly labeled and don't change, and there are even helpful video tutorials on the front page to help you make decisions that are best for you. They don't have a "hold" system at Hover HQ. If you call them, the phone rings until someone picks it up and talks to you! Also, private registration is included in the price, they're the only registrar offering that. And you can create your own nameservers and A records. For a 10% discount, use promo code WEEK. To check it out, and buy your first domain, go to http://twi.hover.com
Also, thank them on twitter @hover. If you prefer, you can call them at (866) 731-6556 and mention our promo code WEEK to get the same great discounts.

iPad 2!!!
This week, Apple finally unveiled the next iPad at a special event at the Yerba Buena center for the arts. The iPad 2 will be thinner than an iPhone 4, lighter than the current iPad, feature a dual core processor, and be available on both AT&T and Verizon at launch. The iPad 2 will also be available in black and white from the first day, and will have front and rear facing cameras. Here's the video in case you missed it:



The iPad 2 wasn't the only new product that debuted at the event. Apple has also created a line of smart covers for the new iPad that use magnetic clasps to align on to the face of the iPad and when they're removed, the iPad automatically wakes up. Here's the video Apple made showing the smart covers in action:



Planet of the Apps

Movie Apps

Inception and Dark Knight
Lon looked at the Inception app this week and he thinks the app is ok. That said, the app is overly expensive and doesn't allow the movie to be imported into your iTunes on your computer. When the iPad 2 comes out, the HDMI connector will allow the movie to be broadcast to your TV in 1080p. Jacob looked at The Dark Knight and found many of the same issues Lon did. The consensus this week is that Blu-ray is still the best way to purchase content for now but that digital media continues to gain territory and these apps represent a great step forward.

Thanks to Lon Harris for coming back this week for Andrea. You can find him on Twitter @Lons and you can subscribe to his podcast at youtube.com/LonsTV. Thanks for watching and we'll see you next week!