iPad

So far, I've preferred using my high-end 17” Macbook Pro for watching full HD (1920*1080) videos as the screen is able to natively, without downsizing the picture, play back the content. With the new, high-resolution, Retina iPad, playing back even Full HD video has become much more desirable than even on a high-end  Macbook Pro: far better screen quality (vastly superior IPS technology vs. TN film, even if the latter is of pretty good quality), no fan noise, no need to connect it to the wall plug (playing back even the most demanding 1080p H.264 videos at max brightness only decreases battery charge by about 18% an hour and doesn't really heat up the iPad 3), mobility, no annoying overheating etc.

I've dedicated several articles (latest one HERE) to converting videos into MP4 (M4V / MOV) files so that they can be played back by the H.264 decoder of even older-generation iDevices. In the current one, I elaborate on how how you can play the output files with the built-in, stock Videos application. This article also belong to my Multimedia article series, in which I plan to publish a “Streaming multimedia over your local Wi-Fi” in the next few days and, then, finally, the real Multimedia bible.

In the last few days, I've participated in several discussion threads in the Phone Cameras / Tablets & Apps forum of DPReview. (See for example THIS, THIS and THIS). In order not to have to repeat the same facts again and again in future discussions, I've decided to dedicate a complete article to the question of using the iPad as a photo frame.

I have a second-generation Apple TV set-top box, and really enjoy using AirPlay to stream movies from my iPad to my 42-inch HDTV. It's fun how simple it is. If you have an iOS device and Apple TV on the same WiFi network, you simply start playing a video and tap a button that gives you the option of playing the movie on your TV instead of your iPad. If you need to go out and want to continue watching the movie, you simply toggle back to the iPad and continue watching.

If you are a Tumblr fan, and looking for an app that makes it easy to follow your favorite photo blogs (or find new ones), TumbleOn might be just what you have been looking for. In similar fashion to reader apps like Pulse, TumblOn leverages the smooth side-scrolling features of the iPad touch screen to make it easy to browse your favorite feeds. The app also provides handy quick-pick services that help you drill down on the best blog content, and even reblog it on your own tumblelog site.

Not everyone wants to keep their iPad or similar tablet in a case. The iPad 2 is wonderfully thin and to put it in a case is almost sacrilegious. Apple's Smart Cover is a nice enhancement but it doesn't always help you keep a good grip on the iPad. In fact, some users have found out the hard way that the iPad 2 can fall to the ground if you grab it by the Smart Cover!

It's nice to see an app by fellow blogger Todd Bernhard, president of No Tie software, win an award at CES. Getting recognition was AutoVerbal Pro Talking Soundboard, a $9.99 app that allows people to communicate who are unable to speak due to conditions such as stroke, surgery, cerebral palsy, and autism. The app has hundreds of photo buttons representing common words or phrases. Users can also program a variety of buttons to speak custom messages. In addition, users can type anything and it will be spoken using text-to-speech.

HyperPhysics App Review

By Nate Adcock

Sometimes you want to just kick back with a cool beverage of choice, and you know...? Do something crazy with your iPad!! Maybe something radical like: observe the conservation of angular momentum applied to a smooth body in motion as it turns ever more rapidly around it's center of mass. Huh, you say?!.. Ever see a skater speed up in a spin just by pulling in her arms? That's an application of exactly what I'm talking about, and you can learn a lot more about these interesting physics principles using the HyperPhysics app!

I've always liked ­playing on my mobile devices, even back in the Pocket PC / Windows Mobile / Palm OS days. They revitalize me quite a lot, particularly after a hard, exhausting day.

Playing without physical controls (buttons), only using the touchscreen, is pretty hard. This includes a lot of game types, particularly ones where quick direction changes are needed and / or you can't make the smallest mistake and must be absolutely sure even the smallest movements on the directional pads (D-pad for short) is registered. In games like these, physical D-pad / button feedback is of extreme importance.

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