Category: Apple

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Shoot Tethered (Wirelessly) to the iPad

If you’re a photographer and you own an iPad you probably already know the benefits of showing off your photos on that nice 10″ display. However, chances are at some point you also had a wish to get your images to your iPad either directly from your camera (tethering) or from your computer wirelessly (not having to sync them over via iTunes – even typing it sounds so outdated). There are ways to do it! I’m at Photoshop World this week and I got a chance to try a new combination (new to me anyway) of the latest Eye-Fi Pro X2 SD card and a cool App called Shuttersnitch for iOS. I reviewed the first Eye-Fi a little over 3 years ago. While the technology worked backed then, and like I said in my review at the time, I really didn’t have any use for it. Back then the idea was this card would wirelessly and automatically transfer your images to your computer or a photo sharing site. First of all I have no interest in uploading images to a photo sharing site directly from my camera without some post processing. Secondly even the transfer to the computer was way too slow. You might as well just pop the card in your card reader and transfer them over in a fraction of the time. Lastly back then the card didn’t support RAW files. Yep, it was a non-starter for me. After I did the review I never touched the card again.

3 years later…I have a use for Eye-Fi cards

As with most technologies, they tend to improve over time. While I still have very little interest in the Eye-Fi cards for wireless transfer to my computer (still a bit too slow) or uploading directly to a photo sharing site, I’m intrigued by the thought of shooing wirelessly into my iPad. While there are other tethering solutions for the iPad out there, they tend to all involve using a computer in the middle of the process to tether your camera to and then transmit the images via WiFi to your iPad. This solution doesn’t require a computer beyond the initial setup of the Eye-Fi Card itself.

 

 

How does it work?

First you need an Eye-Fi Card. I went with the Eye-Fi Pro X2 8GB card because it’s the only that does support RAW files. If you don’t care about shooting in RAW then you can use one of the less expensive cards. The card comes with a card reader and the software you’ll need to install for your Mac/PC to set the card up. The Eye-Fi card has its own built-in WiFi chip and this latest model supports 802.11n which helps out a lot on the speed! After configuring the card to join your wireless network, you need to disable all other image transfer options. In other words, just setup the card to join your hotspot, but NOT to transfer images to your computer.  I shot with my Nikon D7000. For a mobile hotspot, I used my UNLOCKED GSM MiFi 2372 hotspot. It should work with just about any WiFi network as long as both the card and iPad are on the same network. It also should work with the Personal Hotspot feature of the iPhone.

UPDATE: Eye-Fi Cards now support Direct Mode. No need for a hotspot!

Next you’ll need the Shuttersnitch App

The Shuttersnitch App is the App you’ll need on your iPad to talk with your Eye-Fi card. While this App does have native Eye-Fi support built-in, it’s not limited to Eye-Fi cards. It will work with other wireless camera solutions. I hear that David Ziser and his sidekick Damie Tepe are running around here at Photoshop World somewhere showing this with the Canon Wireless Transmitter (instead of the Eye-Fi Card) and getting some SPEEDY transfers (like 1.4 seconds of FINE JPGs) directly, sans the mobile hotspot (probably in an AdHoc mode). I’ve got to check him out and see how he’s doing this?

Once you log into your Eye-Fi account via the App it sends the secret signal over to your selected Eye-Fi card to pair the two together. Now when both your iPad and your Eye-Fi card in your camera are on the same network, your images will automatically transfer over to the Shuttersnitch App so that you can view them right on your iOS device.

See my Shuttersnitch review here or you can just go ahead and buy the App here from the .

What about the transfer speed?

This was the big question I had that I couldn’t seem to find an answer on, so of course I had to try it myself. It’s good, but not great! As you might expect RAW files are going to be slowest. It could take anywhere from 20-30 seconds to transfer a 14MP RAW file from my D7000. The story gets much better if you shoot JPEG. When I shoot JPEG I get anywhere from 9-13 seconds depending on the JPEG quality setting I use. Also keep in mind that the images are still on the card too for transferring to your computer later. An even better workflow for my Nikon D7000 is to shoot JPEG BASIC to the Eye-Fi card for the fastest transfer to the iPad and RAW to the second SD card slot. Finally! A reason for me to like RAW+JPEG shooting. LOL, Thanks Jason for the idea.

Here’s an idea of how it works:

 

What about Compact Flash?

Eye-Fi cards have always been aimed at consumers and like it or not SD is the predominant format in consumer cameras. However, don’t fret my CF shooting pro friends. With this adapter you can can stick an SD Eye-Fi card in your CF based camera. NOTE: This Adapter does NOT work with the newest X2 cards and also keep in mind that this is NOT officially supported. You do so at your own risk!

 

The Bottom Line

If you’ve got an iPad and an SD based camera, the Eye-Fi Pro X2 card plus the Shuttersnitch App is a nice way to go. If you have a CF based DSLR camera, then you might want to consider other wireless transmitter options.

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My Custom iPad 2 Gelaskin is Here

Like I said in my iPad 2 Review, I really like the new Smart Covers for the ease of taking them off and putting them on and leaving the dock connecter exposed and dockable in keyboard dock as well as the charging dock. What I didn't like was having the back of the iPad completely exposed to scratches. So as soon as Gelaskins.com offered iPad 2 Gelaskins I placed my order. My custom designed Gelaskin arrived yesterday and fits beautifully on the iPad 2. Most importantly it works great with the Smart Covers. These skins don't use glue, they are vinyl decals that use 3M adhesive, which is repositionable. For example, I moved the one from my older MacBook Pro to my newer MacBook Pro in about 30 seconds. Since these skins are vinyl they are really designed for "looks" and scratch resistance. If you drop your device on a hard surface, it will likely get damaged. If that's your worry then get a case (not a cover or a skin).

I've been very happy with my Gelaskins over the years and this new one makes the outside of my iPad 2 complete.

You can get your own Gelaskin for a variety of different devices here at Gelaskins.com

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Watch Adobe TV on your iPad

Adobe TV has recently been updated to now stream videos to the iPad. You can now watch hundreds of videos about your favorite Adobe products and technologies directly on your iPad for free. These videos will stream right on the Adobe TV page or you can watch them full screen. Many of the newer episodes are now showing in HD.

You can check out Adobe TV here on your computer or your iPad.

As always you can subscribe to my videos and download them to your computer or iOS devices for FREE here on iTunes.

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Review: Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Air with Built-In AirPlay Support

I've been a long time user of Apple's AirTunes (now called AirPlay) technology. As a matter of fact I bought the AirPort Express the day it was introduced, to be my travel WiFi hotspot, but then I quickly saw the benefits of wireless music streaming and set them up throughout my home. Each AirPort Express I have is either plugged into a powered speaker system like the Bose SoundDock or a surround sound system. Life has been good with this setup and it continues to get better now that Apple is putting AirPlay technology into more things. I also like steaming to audio to multiple rooms. I was really curious though what it would be like to have an AirPlay device that had this support built-in as opposed to having to tack on an AirPort Express to each speaker system. While the AirPort Express provides audio AirPlay support to any device with an audio-in jack, it is an extra expense and requires a cable to the audio device. 

 

Bowers & Wilkins shipped one of the 1st Speaker Systems with built-in AirPlay support

During last weekend's iPad 2 madness I noticed that my local Apple Store had the Zeppelin Air in stock. These speakers are sold out just about everywhere and even the Apple online store quotes a 3-5 week wait. It's not everyday that I plunk down $600 for a new sound system, but I was willing to give this one a shot. AirPlay is a great feature, but it has to sound amazing too. Bowers & Wilkins has a long standing history of making great sounding audio gear. I wasn't really worried about it not sounding great.

 

Setup could have been easier

The Zeppelin Air is beautifully packaged and unboxing it only takes a few moments. They supply a wireless remote, power cable and ethernet cable. The ethernet cable is really only needed for the initial configuration and this is what could be improved. In order to set it up (following the directions) you plug the ethernet cable into the speaker and into your Mac or PC. Then you fire up a browser and go to 169.254.1.1. However, you would have to know that the only way this will work is if you have disabled your Mac/PC's WiFi connection and the only connection you then have is via the Ethernet cable. Luckily I knew this going in. Also it takes a few moments for your computer to realize that this is the only connection you have before it brings up the page. This may cause some users to think that it's not working.

Once the built-in web page comes up you use it to select your WiFi network and enter the password for it. You can also use this opportunity to name the Zeppelin Air whatever you like. This name will show up whenever you go to choose it in iTunes or other AirPlay compatible Apps. While this seems straight forward you get a big warning message that unless you read it slowly, it will sound like the setting you just made didn't work. What the message is really warning you about is that "if" you entered the wrong information on the "previous" screen, it may not connect to your network. Duh! This warning should be on the screen where you're actually keying in the info. I did it 3 times before realizing that the message wasn't saying that it didn't work, it was saying that it may not work if I keyed it in wrong. After you click OK, you disconnect the ethernet cable. The flashing LED will turn a solid dark red if it worked and connected to your network. It also takes a few moments for it to connect, causing a bit of anxiety.

I also took this opportunity to download the latest firmware update from the B&W site and install it. This is when I knew that the process above could have gone better. The firmware update installs via a USB cable. Yep, there is also a USB port on the back of the speaker too. They don't supply the cable, but it made me think how much easier this whole setup could have been had they allowed it to happen over USB instead of Ethernet. There would have been no need to screw with your Mac/PC's network connection at all.  Oh well, it's up and running now!

 

The Zeppelin Air is Live on my Network

Once I got through the setup and Firmware update the next thing I obviously wanted to do was hear my new investment. While I could have simply docked an iPod or iPhone on the built-in dock, I wanted to hear it via AirPlay. So I fired up iTunes 10 and started streaming music to it over the air As I expected/hoped the sound was AWESOME. Nice bass response and just and overall great sound. I've often professed NOT to be an audiophile. I'm not one! However, I can definitely tell the difference between this speaker and other lesser speakers that I have around my home. It easily fills the room I have it and then some. No hiccups or other delays in streaming.

 

AirPlay from Devices

Since AirPlay is built-in to iOS 4 I can pickup  any of my iOS devices (iPad, iPhone 4 or iPod touch) and start streaming audio directly to this speaker. Besides having the ability to stream iPod content I can stream audio from Apps like Mobile Safari, Pandora Radio, YouTube, SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone, etc. See more AirPlay Enabled Apps Here.

 

 

The Bottom Line

There really isn't anything "special" about this speaker system. It has AirPlay built-in! However, and I stress this again that the same exact thing can be accomplished with an AirPort Express Base Station and ANY speaker system, including other Bowers & Wilkins Speakers via a line out of the AirPort Express and into the speaker's audio-in jack. If you are starting from scratch and looking for an all in one solution that only has a single power cable once it's setup and sounds great, this is it! Audio streaming has been flawless so far.

I expect a flood of these kind of devices in 2011. I'm also hoping to see some video displays with AirPlay built-in for wireless streaming of video and audio. This is just the beginning.

You can get the Bowers & Wilins Zeppelin Air here for $600 or less.

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Review: iPad 2

It appears that by all measures the iPad 2 launch was a success! iPad 2 officially went on sale in stores at 5PM local time on Friday, March 11, 2011. Online ordering opened up at 4AM ET the same day. When I woke up around 7AM and placed an order, my delivery time was set at 5-7 days. Apparently I missed the window of 3-5 days earlier in the morning. About an hour later the wait time went to 1-2 weeks for new orders and currently sits at 3-4 weeks for any new orders. This translates to Apple is selling iPad 2s as fast as they can build them and new orders will see a 3-4 week wait time. Placing an online order first thing in the morning for many served as a backup plan in case they didn't get one that evening locally.

Luckily, I was able to snag two at my local Apple Store. I got the 64GB black Wi-Fi+3G and the 32GB white Wi-Fi+3G (both on AT&T). I think the thing that surprised me the most was that even though there was a long line at most Apple stores throughout the US, Apple employees were still taking the time to offer a "personal" setup and walkthrough of the device. For many waiting in line, this meant that it was going to be a long night.

 

First Impressions

When I picked up the original iPad out of the box, my first reaction was "it's heavy". It was heavier than I expected it to be and I knew from that moment that it would not be comfortable for one handed reading for long periods of time. When I picked up the iPad 2 out of the box my initial reaction was "wow, it is lighter." On paper the iPad 2 is not that much lighter at all (1.34 lbs vs. 1.6 lbs). However, it is noticably lighter in reality. I still think it's probably too heavy for long periods of one-handed reading and the Kindle wins in that scenario big time, but for those of you who wished the iPad were lighter to hold and use, I'm happy to report that it is. Also with the new flatter back and rounded edges it's just more comfortable to hold in general. 

While I know that it now has a dual processor A5 chip and significantly faster graphics, I haven't actually felt the effects yet. This is largely due to the fact that I never felt that the original iPad was slow. The iPad 2 is fast and Apps open quickly and graphics display beautifully and fast. Again, I haven't been wowed by the speed increase though. I also have always said that we quickly assimilate speed. You don't really realize how much faster something is until you go back to something that was slow. So perhaps if I spent a day back on my "old" iPad I would notice it more.

 

Smart Covers

I opted for the red and black leather Smart Covers as well as an Orange polyurethane Smart Cover. I know that it's the little things in life that really matter sometimes and this is one of those times. During the keynote and introduction of the iPad 2, the thing that I was most excited about was actually the NEW cover. Don't get me wrong, I've wanted the cameras since day one, but we all knew that the cameras were coming. What we didn't see coming was the new Smart Cover design. Although I have a few different cases for the iPad 1, I was never really in love with any of them. I liked the Apple case the least, which is what lead me to buy the other two in the first place. I liked the Macally Bookstand Case (the one I used the most) and Incase Convertible Book Jacket, but while the Macally case was nice and thin, it never felt stiff enough and while the Incase offered the most support for standing it was too thick. So I alternated between them constantly.

The Smart Case is perfect for me! It keeps the iPad 2 nice and thin for travel. It attaches and detaches in a second. Also it's integrated in that opening the cover turns the iPad 2 on and closing it turns the iPad 2 off. By not covering the back it also makes it very easy to use with accessories such as docks and keyboards. 

Continue reading “Review: iPad 2”

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Are you willing to give up unlimited data for a Personal Hotspot?

Although I know it's iPad 2 day (more on that to come), let's not forget that Apple released iOS 4.3 this week for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. One of the most compelling features for iPhone users is the Personal Hotspot feature (finally!). However, use of this feature on AT&T comes at high price. I'm not talking about the monthly charge as much as I am the fact that original iPhone users have to make a choice if they are thinking about using it. Prior to the iPhone 4 iPhone users on AT&T have enjoyed unlimited 3G data for a single monthly charge. AT&T grandfathered this plan for people upgrading to the iPhone 4. In June 2010 AT&T discontinued the unlimited data plans for NEW iPhone/Smartphone customers. While the new plans offer a lower monthly charge for less data, the highest plan is capped at 2GBs/month. If you go over, you pay!

 

Unlimited Data or Personal Hotspot?

In order to take advantage of the new Personal Hotspot feature that allows you to connect your Laptop, WiFi iPad or other WiFi devices to your iPhone wirelessly to share your iPhone's 3G data connection, you have to switch to the newer Data Pro plan ($25/month for 2GB of data) AND you have to ADD a tethering plan ($20/month) for a total of $45/month. What sucks the most about this is that the extra $20/month doesn't get you any more data! It's a "just because we can" charge. CORRECTION: The New DataPro tethering plan gives your 4GB total per month. Of course if you use the Personal Hotspot feature you'll likely hit that 4GBs faster and then have to start paying for additional data. On the plus side you can choose to turn this feature on or off on your account as needed. If you know you're going on a trip and want to use it, you can turn it on and then turn it off for the following month. Either way, you still have to give up your Unlimited Data Plan to use it.

 

Choices

Your choice of course is to not switch. Besides that option, you can weigh the cost of a data card or the MiFi if you're going to be a heavy user. Lastly since Jailbreaking your iPhone is legal, you could use a Jailbroken App that allows you to turn your iPhone into a personal hotspot without switching plans (you may be violating AT&T's rules by doing this and I'm not telling you to do so. You would be doing this AT YOUR OWN RISK and risk to your Apple Warranty). Verizon is already rumored to be dropping their iPhone unlimited plans soon too!

For now and as long as it's allowed I'll be sticking with my Unlimited Plan! 

 

AT&T and Verizon you really need to rethink "data".

Continue reading “Are you willing to give up unlimited data for a Personal Hotspot?”

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How Much Faster is an SSD Drive?

 

SSD (Solid State Drives) are expensive! So the question that people usually have is “how much faster are they and will I see a difference?” In a nutshell the answer I have is FAST and YES! See my speed test above.

 

The SSD configuration is Apple’s CTO (configure to order) 512GB Drive. It’s in a 2011 MacBook Pro with 8GB of RAM and the 2.3GHz Quad Core i7 processor.

The 2010 MacBook that it’s being compared to has a 500GB 7200 RPM SATA drive. It also has 8GB of RAM and a 2.66GHz Dual Core i7 processor.

You don’t have to buy a new computer to get an SSD speed boost. OWC has several options for your existing computer.

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My New Watch is an iPod nano

Although I love gadgets, when it comes to my watch I've always gone with something pretty simple. It's not even digital. I've worn an analog watch for years and have been happy. I remember when the 6th generation iPod nano was released and Steve made the joke about it being warn as a watch I smiled and really didn't give it a second thought. Actually I had no plans of ever buying the new nano simply because I didn't need one. My personal iPod is my iPhone 4. If I want to watch a movie on the go I usually do that on my iPad. I just don't need to carry around another iPod. The only other iPod I use is an iPod touch in my studio during photo shoots. I do own some of the older nanos and there is one dedicated to the glove compartment in my car. The only reason I would ever upgrade that one is if I needed more space or if Apple ever saw fit to provide WiFi syncing of media (that one I'd buy in a heartbeat). Nope, the new nano just never appealed to me.

 

I got a gift!

My buddy Bruce bought me the New nano as a belated Christmas present. The only reason the gift was delayed because he didn't just want to give me a nano (that I didn't need) he wanted to give me a cool tech watch! In order for that to happen he had to wait for the shipping of arguably the best wristband solution for the new iPod nano. It's called the TikTok. This was actually a Kickstarter seed project that got off the ground by individual donations/investments to the project and Bruce invested in them. The interest in this product was staggering!  They originally only wanted to raise $15,000 to do the project and to date they've raised $941,718! While the concept of wearing an iPod is certainly not new, it appears that there are lots of people that want to wear one as a watch.

 

Using the nano as a watch

First off while the band totally rocks! There are a couple of pros and cons to wearing an iPod nano as a watch though. The first one is that while the nano is a small iPod, it's a fairly large watch. I have large wrists so I can pull it off 🙂 The iPod nano has a multi-touch screen. This is cool because you have instant access to your music, pictures, FM radio, and other features like a pedometer, stopwatch and of course a clock. Speaking of the clock that's built-in to the nano you would think that the options to customize it would be endless. However, there are only a couple of choices. You can choose a black or white face. You can, umm….that's about it. There's no choice for a digital display or any other visual features. I'm fine with an analog display because that's what I was using anyway but it would be nice to have more options. The nano also offers an option to display the time upon touching the button no matter what App you are running. Again, this is an iPod that has a clock, not an Apple watch. It's clear that Apple didn't spend a lot of time trying to make this the ultimate "watch." The only real downside is having to press the button to see the time. Like all Apple multi-touch devices you can't just tap the display to wake it. You have to press the hardware button. I'd love to see a "shake" to display the time feature or a low power OLED continuous display. Although the nano doesn't run iOS, it's begging for Apps. I could see developers going nuts making "mini" or nano Apps for the wrist. Lastly even as an iPod the one other feature that is painfully missing is Bluetooth. I would LOVE to be able to use wireless headphones with this "watch". That would be killer!

All-in-all I'm happy with my gift! Thanks Bruce! It's my main watch now.

 

You can get the iPod nano here on sale starting at $134.

You can get the TikTok band here starting at $34.95.

Continue reading “My New Watch is an iPod nano”

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The New MacBook Pros are Here!

 

As rumored, Apple introduced their NEW MacBook Pro lineup today and while they didn't introduce the MacBook PrAir that I'd hoped for, these new machines are noteworthy in terms of performance features. The most notable enhancement is the new "Thunderbolt" (aka Light Peak) multipurpose port offering up to 10Gbps data throughput. This makes it the fastest I/O port that Apple has ever used on a notebook offering speeds that are 12 times faster than Firewire 800. The next notable update is the move to the Intel Quad Core "Sandy Bridge" processors. Lastly in the notable update area is the upgraded "FaceTime HD" camera offering a much higher resolution image over the previous iSight camera. Apple also moved to AMD graphics cards. I had hoped for faster Nvidia cards with 1GB of RAM or more for Mercury (effects) Playback in Premiere Pro CS5, but the good news is that Premiere Pro rocks with real-time GPU playback on AMD too.

Get all the specs here.

 

So what will I do?

Although I had hoped for a New MacBook Pro that was closer to the MacBook Air in terms of weight, I can't argue the potential of these new notebooks for making my work and demos go even faster. I look forward to a NEW 15" "work" MacBook Pro (is the store back up yet? 🙂 ) However, I had a backup plan in case these weren't the new lighter weight models that I dreamed of and that plan is to buy a 13" MacBook Air to be my "personal" notebook. Granted I do personal stuff on my work notebook and I'd probably do work on my personal notebook, but having the choice of either one depending on my needs for a particular trip would be great. This way if I'm NOT traveling to do a demo/teach a class where I need all the horse power I can get, then I'd bring the Air. I'd probably also use the Air around the house along with the iPad. With services like Dropbox.com keeping files in sync between multiple computers is not a problem these days. So that's my plan.

 

UPDATE – To answer the questions I'm getting regarding Premiere Pro playback on the new AMD graphics cards

Here's a video by my buddy Dave

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUyxSJUVQb0

 

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Review: My New Jawbone Era Headset – It’s Jack’s Fault :)

I've been totally happy with my Jawbone ICON headset (see my original review here). I did notice a new model called the Jawbone Era, but I didn't really get around to looking at it. Then my buddy Jack did his review of it and I read it. There was one thing in his review that caused me to place an order on the spot. Well actually it was two things. The first thing and probably the one that stood out the most was actually a little thing. When I receive a call on the Jawbone ICON it rings in the headset, but it also reads off the phone number from the caller-ID. While that's fine, in most cases I'm not going to know whose number it is because I don't commit phone numbers to memory. This means I either just take the call or look at the display on my phone first. The Jawbone Era has a feature that lets you enter up to 20 favorite numbers with names via the MyTalk website and it will actually read off the name aloud when that person calls. This makes an already great headset that much more "handsfree". The next thing was the Noise Cancellation. According to Jawbone, this headset has their "Military-grade NoiseAssassin 3.0" and while I never had a problem with people hearing me with the ICON, there have been times I've been in noisy environments and better noise reduction would have been nice. 

 

But wait, there's more

Those reasons might not be enough for the general population to upgrade. So Jawbone didn't stop there. This new version while it's slightly longer than the ICON is also slightly thinner. It appears that this configuration allowed them to use a bigger or better battery. So now instead of 4 hours of talk time I get 5 hours. This is also the first headset with a built-in accelermeter. That's right! You can shake to answer a call. I didn't say it wouldn't make you look strange, but the feature is there if you want to enable it and use it. I much prefer the new "doubletap" to answer feature. Like the Jawbone ICON, the Jawbone Era is software upgradable with firmware updates as well as software add-ons. My favorite voice is "The Ace". If you have an iPhone or Blackberry the headset's battery indicator will display right on your phone. I also commend Jawbone for including several different ear gels at different sizes. It also supports A2DP which allows you to use this headset for your music and App playback as well.

I can't think of a single feature that I would add to this headset. It does it all and is a great step up from the ICON.

You can get the Jawbone Era here for $129.99 or less.