Archive for November, 2011

Why I chose iPhone over Android

After two years of use and dropping it on concrete floors on several occasions my iPhone 3GS was experiencing problems so I recently upgraded to the iPhone 4S.

I considered an Android based phone however there were several factors that convinced me that sticking with Apple was the best choice for my situation.

1. Like most iPhone owners I have quite a few apps. Some of which (like my navigational and nautical) are not cheap. While I could have likely replaced them, it would have added substantially to my upgrade cost.
2. While I’ve resisted up until now, I’m seriously considering buying an iPad2. The ability to have the same apps on both devices is attractive.
3. Hardware interfaces into my audio system on my bike and in my car will only work with the Apple devices. While I could have just used an audio jack, I would have lost my remote display and control capabilities.

These factors were so compelling that I didn’t give much serious consideration to the Android option.

So far I like the phone. While it has a faster processor, I haven’t really noticed much difference in performance. The SIRI functionality has potential. While it’s the best speech recognition interface I’ve encountered it still needs work.

The developers’ of SIRI do have a sense of humour. After several failed attempts at dictating an email, I told SIRI that it was really f’ing stupid. It responded with “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that”.

Intellectual Property rights run amok

It seems that litigation related to intellectual property (IP) is increasing at an accelerating pace. Patent and copyrights are of course vital for companies to innovate and to succeed but it seems that the systems and regulations meant to protect content creators and innovators are being manipulated.

This article by Bloomberg cites several examples of what has been an obvious trend:

1. Patents awarded for general concepts (especially in software and genomics)
2. Weak IP being bought, traded and leveraged to impede competitors
3. Opportunists using the system to profit from others’ innovation
4. Rights being granted for things that no individual or company should be allowed to own
5. Exploitation and manipulation to stifle innovation and protect dying business models (MPAA & RIAA come to mind)

Softchoice Acquires Unis Lumin

I’ve been hearing rumours of an pending acquisition for months but it’s finally official. Softchoice has acquired Unis Lumin for $17M in cash. I’ve known both founders since before they started the company and I’m pleased that after more than 20 years of hard work, they get to cash out.

It will be interesting to see what the new owners do with the company.

Congratulations Mauro and John!