iPad mini: 4 months later

Four months later, was the lack of Retina a deal-breaker, or has the iPad mini turned out to be the best tablet ever?

Back in October Apple introduced the iPad mini. We posted our iPad mini review, of course, and you told us how you felt about it in our iPad mini forums. But that was first blush. That was the romance and judgement of something new. It's been 4 months now. It's been a third of a year with a smaller, lighter form factor, and a non-Retina display. So it's time for a checkpoint. How has the iPad mini held up? If we dismissed it before, has it grown on us? If we embraced it, have we fallen out of love? How are we using, or not using, the iPad mini now, some 4 months later?

Chris Oldroyd

I don?t actually own an iPad mini, but we do have one in our household and so I have used it quite a bit. My first impression of the iPad mini still stands 4 months later -- I like it. As soon as I saw it revealed, I loved the thinness of it and the smaller size too.

Having now used it, I do feel that it is just a bit small for my personal needs; I watch a lot of video on my iPad 2 and take a lot of handwritten notes which is much easier to do on the larger screen. Having said that, the portability of the iPad mini is a really attractive option.

I will be replacing my iPad 2 when the next generation devices hit the market this year and I will have an important decision to make then. The whole Retina debate doesn?t bother me all that much but if the rumors are true, both devices will have it then anyway. The iPad mini is an awesome iPad there is no question about it but it may just be too small for me!

Derek Kessler

I picked up an iPad Mini on launch day and immediately fell in love. It's not a perfect tablet - there is no such thing - but I think it might very well be the best tablet out there.

I've already decided that come next generation I'll be grabbing a larger storage, LTE-enabled version and it's going to replace my in-car GPS (an aging and cranky TomTom unit - so sue me, I'm old fashioned) and my Verizon MiFi. I'm all for cutting back on the number of devices I carry around, and if I can take three devices and turn them into one, so much the better. I'm so much in love with my iPad Mini that I want it to do everything. That's the mark of a good product, no?

Ally Kazmucha

When I first purchased an iPad mini, I really wasn't too sure how I would take to using it in my everyday workflow. My iPad 3 had always done well for me and I didn't really see myself replacing it this early in its lifecycle. I figured if I didn't use the iPad mini, I could always sell it.

After a few months, I actually find myself using both iPads regularly. My iPad 3 now stays at my office and gets used strictly as a point of sale and work tablet. I'll take it with me to Starbucks occasionally in order to get some writing done but now that keyboard cases are available for the iPad mini as well, that may change -- the mini is much easier to carry around.

While at home, I never really used my iPad 3 a whole lot. I do find myself using my iPad mini quite often though. The size is perfect for reading and lounging. I just always found my standard-sized iPad not as convenient for casual browsing and always ended up using my iPhone. Now, unless I need to make a call, my iPhone typically goes on the charger once I get home, and I pick up my iPad mini to relax.

Everyone's mileage may vary and most people certainly won't have a need to use two iPads on a regular basis but the iPad mini will fit many people's needs just fine for the price and the size.

Leanna Lofte

When the iPad mini was first announced, I was excited about a smaller, lighter, more portable iPad, but since it wasn't given a Retina display, I assumed I would only be my "purse iPad". When I picked mine up at the Apple Store, my first thought was "the cutest iPad, yet!", but I still didn't see myself choosing it over the gorgeous screen of my iPad 3 while at home.

I was totally wrong. In fact, I rarely use my iPad 3 these days. Yes, the screen is far superior on the iPad 3, but the size and weight of the iPad mini wins me over every time. It's perfect.

The iPad mini is also perfect for my 2-year-old daughter. For younger kids, iPads are easier to use than iPhones and iPod touches, but have always been a little heavy for them to handle. The iPad mini, however, is just right. It offers developing motor skills a larger screen without too much added bulk.

The iPad mini is the best iPad I've ever owned.

Rene Ritchie

When Apple announced the iPad mini, I thought the lack of Retina display would be a deal-breaker for me. I'm a design diva and I was sure 132ppi would be like sandpaper on my pupils. During the course of my initial iPad mini review, however, I found out I was wrong. Most of the time, after a few moments, I didn't even notice the lack of Retina. Aside from small text, I grew to barely notice it at all. I was too busy doing stuff.

The big boy iPad was always a laptop or tabletop device for me. I carried it in my bag to use as a mobile hotspot for my MacBook, and I pulled it out and sat up with it to read, watch videos, and otherwise enjoy myself when I wanted to relax. But I couldn't use it in bed -- it was heavy enough to tire my arms and dent my face -- or while walking around, Star Trek crewmember-like.

The iPad mini isn't. Because it's lighter and smaller, it's even better to keep in my bag as a mobile hotspot, and even better to use while lying down and walking around. I've even used the iPad mini as a phone, not as ideally as my iPhone, but more than well enough.

I've grown to use the iPad mini as my primary tablet. I use it for everything now, from surfing the web to gaming to reading to light blogging... you get the idea. There are only 3 things I still break out the iPad 4 for: reading comic books, which are designed for a size closer to the iPad 4's screen, watching epic-level video, which is more engrossing at a larger size, and for those rare occasions when I want to travel and get a good amount of work done without a laptop.

If I weren't still bound to my MacBook Pro. If I didn't still use Photoshop and Final Cut Pro far too much to cut my truck cord any time soon, I might find the full-sized iPad a better replacement. With my current use case, however, as something I need to fill the gap between laptop and phone, the iPad mini remains my go to.

Your iPad mini review, 4 months later?

Head on over to the iPad mini forum and give us your 4-months later review. We'll pick a few of the best ones and feature them on the blog this Saturday. The more opinions, the better, so hurry on over!

• iPad mini 4 months later thread

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/ggg90FtcGWU/story01.htm

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Soccer-Bradford long for happy ending to fairytale Cup run

BRADFORD, England, Feb 19 (Reuters) - An excited youngster stocked up on flags for his Wembley trip and the players spoke of fairytales as Bradford City prepared for the last chapter in a giant-killing run that has lifted the gloom around the club.

A fourth-tier team featuring a former supermarket shelf-stacker, a cancer survivor and players released by top clubs are hoping to beat a Premier League outfit for the fourth time this season when Bradford take on Swansea City in Sunday's League Cup final.

"It's going to be the biggest game we've played in our lives," right back Stephen Darby told Reuters on Tuesday.

"Over the last few years the football club hasn't had a lot to shout about but it's going to be a massive day for everyone, it's great for Bradford City and the people of Bradford."

The Bantams are the first fourth-tier side to reach a major English cup final for 51 years and will be making only their second Wembley appearance - the previous one being the 1996 third-tier playoff final.

After several miserable seasons since relegation from the Premier League in 2001, including two spells in administration, the feat of a fourth-tier team beating Arsenal, Wigan Athletic and Aston Villa en route to Wembley is the stuff of dreams.

The club, whose only major silverware is the 1911 FA Cup, is also probably best known for tragedy rather than glory after a 1985 fire at its Valley Parade ground killed 56 fans.

It is not just the football club that has lived under black clouds. The West Yorkshire city has been harder hit than many by the economic downturn, it has higher-than average crime rates and is also still remembered for race riots in 2001.

"Bradford is known for bad things like riots. There are no shops, there's a lot of negative," fan Julia North said after giving her 12-year-old son Liam money to get the club's claret and amber flags.

"It's great there's now something positive."

Thrilled Liam added: "It means the whole world to me. When we beat Villa (in the semi-final) I just went mental."

There is a buzz around the city with stalls selling anything from paper masks with the face of manager Phil Parkinson to T-shirts emblazoned 'Bradford City Giant Killers Marching on Wembley Way'.

One pub near the train station was advertising being open from 0430 on Sunday for anyone wanting ale or food before heading south while the local newspaper is printing cut-out-and-keep posters of the players.

FINANCIAL SECURITY

The cup run will provide the club with a cash injection of more than two million pounds ($3 million) - an amount that would pay one of the Premier League's top earners around eight weeks' wages but for Bradford that should mean long-term financial security.

"It's the owners' job and my job to make sure this extra revenue is used to keep improving the structure of the club and make sure our supporters have got a football club in years to come that is going to flourish," said Parkinson.

"That is really important. Much as we are all going to enjoy this weekend, on the back of that it does give us revenue which we wouldn't have expected to make so we are going to have to use it very wisely."

Lying mid-table in the fourth tier, with 44 points from 31 games, Bradford are punching well above their weight with a group of players who have made up for their lack of big transfer fees with a huge show of determination and a slice of luck.

There are no household names, only the likes of striker James Hanson who used to work in a local supermarket and headed the goal that booked the place in the final or Reading reject Carl McHugh who almost never made it as a professional.

Their most experienced player is probably goalkeeper Matt Duke, who made Premier League appearances for Hull City and who has recovered after being diagnosed with testicular cancer five years ago.

Victory over Swansea would earn Bradford a place in the Europa League, their first continental appearance since the now defunct Intertoto Cup in 2000, and a concept that some players could not get their heads around.

"It would be crazy, it would be mental but it would be unbelievable for the club," said McHugh who is taking 111 friends and family with him to Wembley.

"We're going to be underdogs. It's going to take Swansea having an off day and us being right at the top of our game and having a little bit of luck to win it."

The lack of expectation is what forward Alan Connell reckons has been the key to Bradford's successful cup run and that could help them against Swansea.

"I honestly haven't even thought about winning it. It's all a bit of a fairytale," he said.

"Being the underdogs has helped us, we're just very relaxed and very disciplined as a team. We've got a game against 11 players, let's go and play."

($1 = 0.6475 British pounds) (Editing by Tony Jimenez)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/soccer-bradford-long-happy-ending-fairytale-cup-run-205722542--sow.html

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French family with 4 kids kidnapped in Africa

AFP - Getty Images / Thanassis Stavrakis

French President Francois Hollande speaks during a press conference after a meeting with Greece's Prime Minister Antonis Samaras at Maximos mansion in Athens on Tuesday. The president said the seven French nationals kidnapped in Cameron were been taken by a "terrorist group that we know and that is in Nigeria."

By Bate Felix and Jean-Baptiste Vey, Reuters

Gunmen from Nigeria kidnapped a French family that included four children on Tuesday in northern Cameroon near the border with Nigeria, French President Francois Hollande said.

They were apparently tourists, he said.

The risk of attacks on French nationals and interests in Africa has risen since France sent forces into Mali last month to help oust Islamist rebels occupying the country's north.

"They have been taken by a terrorist group that we know and that is in Nigeria," Hollande told reporters during a visit to Greece. Islamist militants in northern Nigeria now pose the biggest threat to stability in Africa's top oil-producing state.

Radio France International had earlier reported the kidnapping, saying that the seven people were nabbed by armed men on motorbikes and were being taken towards Nigeria.

Western governments have grown concerned that Nigeria's radical Islamists may link up with groups elsewhere in the region, particularly al-Qaida's North African wing, Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, given the conflict in nearby Mali.

The seven tourists were abducted at around 7 a.m. in a village about six miles from the Nigerian border near the Waza national park and Lake Chad in the extreme north of Cameroon where Westerners often go for holidays.

It was the first case of foreigners being seized in the mostly Muslim north of Cameroon, a former French colony.

"I see the hand of (Nigerian militants) Boko Haram in that part of Cameroon. France is in Mali, and it will continue until its mission is completed," Hollande said.

France intervened in Mali last month when Islamist rebels, after hijacking a rebellion by ethnic Tuareg MNLA separatists to seize control of the north in the confusion following a military coup, pushed south towards the capital, Bamako.

Eight French citizens are already being held in West Africa's Sahel region by al-Qaida-affiliated groups.

Cameroon Information Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary said he could not immediately confirm the kidnapping report.

On Sunday, seven foreigners were snatched from the compound of Lebanese construction company Setraco in northern Nigeria's Bauchi state, and al-Qaida-linked Ansaru took responsibility.

Northern Nigeria is increasingly afflicted by attacks and kidnappings by Islamist militants. Ansaru, which rose to prominence only in recent months, has also claimed the abduction in December of a French national who is still missing.

An Ansaru statement said kidnappings were driven by "the transgression and atrocities done to the religion of Allah by the European countries in many places, such as Afghanistan and Mali."

Related:?

European Union approves ?20 million in aid for Mali

Malian students head back to school after Islamist rebels expelled from Gao

Nigeria cautiously welcomes Boko Haram ceasefire

This story was originally published on Tue Feb 19, 2013 11:06 AM EST

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/19/17017382-french-family-with-4-children-kidnapped-by-islamists-in-africa?lite

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KingOfFighters commented on Kyle Hilliard's post about Sony Looks Back On The PlayStation 3 .

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Bundesbank: German economy to avoid recession

FRANKFURT (AP) ? German's central bank says the country's economy is on track to avoid a recession as it shows signs of growth in the first three months of the year.

Europe's largest economy shrank 0.6 percent in the last quarter of 2012. Two straight quarters of falling output is a common definition of recession.

The Bundesbank says in its monthly report out Monday that increasing business optimism and easing fears about the government debt crisis among the 17 European Union euro countries mean business may become more willing to invest and expand. That means that "a plus in total economic production can be expected for the first quarter of 2013."

A growing German economy could help speed the eurozone's recovery, which is mired in recession. Governments are cutting spending and raising taxes to reduce heavy levels of debt, slowing their economies. Greece, Portugal and Ireland have needed bailout loans from the other eurozone members, while Spain and Italy are in recessions with high unemployment.

The European Central Bank says the eurozone will shrink 0.3 percent in 2013 and only start to recover later in the year. Growth is key for solving the debt crisis, since it shrinks the size of country's debts relative to their economy and increases revenue from income and business taxes.

German growth helps the other countries in the eurozone because German consumers purchase imports from them, and because German companies use firms in neighboring countries as suppliers.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bundesbank-german-economy-avoid-recession-111408148--finance.html

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HTC One coming to Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T in the US, arriving in UK on EE, Vodafone and O2

Now that the HTC One is out in the open, you might be wondering where to get one, right? Fortunately, a number of carriers have stepped up: if you're in the UK, you'll find it with LTE on EE "mid-March" for £70 on a 2-year, £41 1GB data plan and at O2 and Vodafone on March 15th, with pricing for the latter two still to come. If you'd prefer an off-contract buy, Clove is selling the 32GB model in black or silver for £425 (plus VAT); pre-orders are open now, with first shipments expected on March 15th.

Stateside, Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile will also offer 4G versions of the fresh handset -- but none have mentioned pricing or availability, yet. Meanwhile, Canadians will see the One on Bell, Rogers and Telus, and HTC said that that its new flagship would launch in "80 countries over 185 mobile retailers and operators," making it "the largest rollout ever" for the company. Naturally, we'll keep you up-to-date with all those dates and prices the instant we lay eyes on them.

Show full PR text

HTC One with superfast 4G - only on EE

19 February 2013. London. EE, the UK's most advanced digital communications company, today announced it will exclusively launch the new HTC One smartphone with superfast 4G.

The HTC One will be available on EE's superfast 4G service via the EE online shop, EE telesales and EE retail stores from mid-March. It will be available across a range of 4GEE price plans, and is just £69.99 on a £41 per month 24 month package, with users receiving 1GB of mobile data, as well as unlimited UK calls and texts.

Paul Jevons, Director of Products and Devices, EE, said: "We're delighted to be the only operator to offer the HTC One enabled with 4G from launch. This handset delivers an incredible mobile experience when matched with EE's superfast 4G network - allowing customers to
make the most out of their HTC One when on the move."

In addition to superfast speeds and EE services, customers with an HTC One smartphone on a 4GEE price plan will also benefit from:

· EE Film - the UK film service that features 2-for-1 on cinema tickets

· A discount on EE superfast fibre broadband - so they can get blistering download speeds at home and on the move

· Fast track customer service by dialling '33' from their handset

The HTC One will also be available on the UK's largest 3G network from Orange and T-Mobile across a range of plans including £69.99 on a £36 per month, 24 month plan.

Further information on the HTC One, including full details of EE's price plans and pre-order* will be made available in due course on www.ee.co.uk/shop.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

Comments

Source: Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, Clove UK

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/19/htc-one-coming-to-sprint-t-mobile-ee-to-carry-lte/

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'Harlem Shake' Miami Videos: Does Pepe Billete Do It Best?

Every city in America has done the viral dance craze 'Harlem Shake' by now -- but how many have filmed it led by a Cuban puppet?

Pepe Billete -- Miami's own felt-covered, cigar-chomping, Spanglish-speaking puppet uncle -- called his pals to AmericanAirlines Arena Sunday afternoon to film a 305 version of the irrepressible meme, which naturally was renamed the "Haslem Shake" for extra Dade flavor.

In the crowd: booty bass maestro Otto Von Schirach, a Cleopatra wig, a kid in a really fabulous cat t-shirt (call us!), and about 200 Heat fans going nuts. In other words, it looked like a cross between a pre-game crowd, a night at Ultra Music Festival, and any random Tuesday on Biscayne Boulevard.

But did Billete do it best? We've compiled a handful of the best Miami versions of the Harlem Shake, including clips from a local rowing club, high school chorus, the LIV nightclub offices, kids in Hialeah, the University of Miami, and even those Canadian sisters filmed dancing in the Miami Beach Police offices.

Check 'em out and let us know which one's your favorite:

• HASLEM SHAKE aka Heat Nation Harlem Shake

  "The Cops wouldn't let Pepe Billete and 300 of the Miami Heat's most dedicated fans film at the AAA so they converge on Biscayne Blvd and form tremendo BAYOOOOOOOOO!"

• The Official University of Miami Harlem Shake

  "The []_[] takes over the Harlem Shake!! Presented By: Alex Appel, Dan Overstreet, Curveline Films"

• Harlem Shake - LIV HQ

  "Our version of the Harlem Shake, shot on location at LIV Headquarters.. (notice what happens to the bouncing guy on the lower left)"

• Harlem Shake v34 (Miami Heat Edition)

• HARLEM SHAKE MIAMI ROWING CLUB (OFFICIAL)

• Harlem Shake Miami Ad School South Beach

• Harlem Shake v305 Hialeah Edition (Original)

• Harlem shake In Handcuffs (canadian sisters arrested miami dade precint version)

• South Miami Chorus Harlem Shake

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/17/miami-harlem-shake-videos-haslem_n_2708668.html

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