Erfon Elijah - page 17

As a photographer, I love playing with new lights that can change the look and feel and my portraits. So when Adorama asked me if I’d like to review their new $99 Flashpoint Ring Light, I was intrigued.

Could such an inexpensive piece of lighting equipment perform as well as gear that costs hundreds more? I’ll answer that question in a moment, but before I do, let me tell you a little bit about what ring lights do.

On our brand new CultCast, we talk rumors of a new iPad 5 and mini in March and the features we think Apple needs to build into iOS 7, but we couldn’t help wrap the show with our favorite movies of 2012. Why? Cause it’s just that slow of a news week! What better time to have an episode where anything goes?

So we get crazy on this week’s CultCast, even talking about burlesque dancing and whether Xbox or Playstation is the right system for you.

It’s an all-new Mad-Maxian new episode of CultCast! Subscribe to on iTunes or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

On this week’s CultCast, we’re ending the year with our favorite gear! Don’t miss our “End of Days, Faves ‘N Raves,” where pitch our favorite apps, accessories, games, even shows, of 2012.

But before that, we’ll break down the whole Instagram debacle for you, and tell you why you should be paying attention to the big I’s plans for your personal pics.

All that and Tim Cook, person of the year?

Join us, friends! Subscribe to The CultCast now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Show notes ahead!

In my line of work, I see a lot of plastic-y, rubbery, or other kinds of cheaply-made iPhone cases. So when I saw Crimson’s new iPhone 5 case ($45), looking all svelte and made from the same aluminum they bolt into Boeing planes, I just had to see if it was truly first class, or just another case made for coach.

Ok, so we may not be rockstars (yet), but we just hit 1,000,000 downloads of The CultCast, our fun, quirky, totally off-base podcast covering everything in the wonderful world of Apple. That’s like earning a platinum record! Now we know what Led Zeppelin felt like… But we couldn’t have done it without our smart, good-looking, worldwide audience supporting us all the way. If you’ve ever listened to an episode of The CultCast, thank you, we love you, and we would like to hold your hand.

But enough self sycophancy! On our newest episode, we talk Google Maps reborn on iOS. We’ll tell you what we love, what we don’t, and if it scratches the itch we’ve all had since the demise of the last Google Maps.

Plus: why Twitter wants to be your next Instagram, and a new Flickr app rises from the ashes—but is it too little too late?

Join us on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Think Tank’s new Airport Commuter camera bag ($199) is something of a paradox: Though it’s the size of a normal backpack, it manages to fit an abnormal amount of glass, gear, a full-size a Macbook Pro, and an iPad.

But could such a compact bag hold so many precious items in harmony? I packed it up, strapped it on, and set out to find out.

Apple CEO Tim Cook practically never grants interviews, and rarer still, one where he talks with such candor about the future of Apple, the legacy of Steve Jobs, and why Apple products aren’t currently made here in the USA, but soon will be.

Join us on our newest CultCast as we discuss Mr. Cook’s recent interviews, his frank comments about Apple’s “intense interest” in TV, and why that new Apple-stamped mystery set could be built right here in the U.S. of A.

All that and more on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Carbon fiber tripods are great, aren’t they? They’re slim on weight, and if they’re built well, are steady as an oak. Problem is, good ones can cost $600-$800 dollars, and unless you’re regularly shooting for cash, it’s hard to justify spending that kind of cheese.

So when Manfrotto asked me to check out their 290-series MT294C3 carbon fiber tripod ($250 legs only, $319 with 3-Way Pan/Tilt Head as I reviewed it) I pointed at them, stroked my mustache, and said, absolutely. Manfrotto’s a known name in the photo world, but would their new series of affordable carbon-hewn tripods be worthy of their pedigree? I set out to see.

iTunes 11 might just be the best version yet, with a beautiful new user interface and a plethora of great new features that we love. But with everyone these days streaming all-you-can-eat music from excellent apps like Spotify and Rdio, we had to ask—is it too little too late? On our all-new CultCast, we’ll tell you which iTunes 11 features we love most, but which one feature it really needs to stay relevant in the world of music.

Then, we ponder a new gold-plated iPhone accessory so ridiculous, it might just be genius.

All that and a brand new Faves & Raves on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Read on for the show notes and to learn how you could promote your product or service on one of our future episodes.

Power! It’s the stuff I’m always hunting for in the halls of conventions, like the upcoming 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). For you see, when you’re multi-touching your iPhone 5 morning, noon, and night, a once-a-day charge isn’t going to cut it.

So this year, when I’m gadget-hunting on the floors of CES, in my bag I’ll definitely be carrying the Mophie Juice Pack Powerstation ($79). It’s tiny, looks great (more on that in a sec), and will charge a dying iPhone 5 up to two times. Yes sir, in my short time with it thus far, I reckon it’s already become one of my favorite new iPhone accessories.

While you all were picking the choicest dark and white turkey meats for your plates and piling high glistening mountains of mashed potatoes, we here at Cult of Mac were stuck in our broadcasting dungeons recording another brand new CultCast, cause guess what? We’re just. That. Professional.

Ok so we actually recorded Wednesday. But with so much great Apple news and topics to cover this week, we just had to hop on the mics before the holiday gorging commenced.

Apple’s Black Friday sales; Oprah’s love for the iPad; Tim Cook’s favorite Thanksgiving accoutrements—it’s all that and more on this gravy-smothered over-stuffed CultCast! Subscribe now to The CultCast on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Read on for the show notes and to learn how you could promote your product or service on one of our future episodes.

At long last, a full year after its iPhone debut, the Call of Duty Elite app (free) has finally made its way to the iPad. I can finally view my Xbox Live carnage on my iPad 3’s big, beautiful, retina display screen. But besides peeping kill counts, this freshly minted app also introduces some very interesting new features.

Apple’s primed and ready to take over your entire world of media; Microsoft’s paid cavalcade of celebrity Windows Phone endorsements make us sad; and the big plans Apple has to fan the flames of employee innovation; as you’ll soon hear, no topic is safe from discussion on this week’s CultCast. We even dive deep into the ancient practice of platonic male hand holding.

You think I’m joking…

All that and a Faves and Raves controversy meltdown! Subscribe now to The CultCast on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Read on for the show notes and to learn how you could promote your product or service on one of our future episodes.

“OMG—it’s huuuuge…” That’s what my friend said when she first saw me holding the Retrospective 50 camera bag from Think Tank Photo ($240). My ego properly boosted, I heartily agreed with her.

But besides being the size of a japanese automobile, the Retrospective 50 (R50) is a continuation of functional, understated, vintage-looking camera bags from Think Tank. And unlike the other smaller bags in the Retrospective line, this one has a special space reserved for your 15-Inch Macbook Pro, which I discovered in testing, can be both a pro and a con.

On our newest CultCast, we reunite with Chis Foresman of Ars Technica, and with no new Apple hardware to wax on and on about, we were forced to come up with real, actual show content!

But we work well under pressure, so this week we cover some of our favorite and most useful productivity apps; tell you if you can ever expect to see Google’s answer to Apple Maps released to the App Store; and did you know Samsung’s about to change their logo to a pear with a bite taken out of it? Kidding! But rumor is they’re about to rebrand in a major, more “Apple-like” way…

All that and our thoughts on Microsoft SmartGlass, the app that let’s you control your Xbox with your iPhone! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App. And please note, if episode 42 isn’t yet showing up for you, subscribing will fix that problem right quick.

Helpless and lost in a whirlwind of tasks I can never remember to complete—that’s me without a good todo app on my side. And so, since my last favorite app started having issues the developers seem intent on never fixing, I decided to give the Producteev iPhone and desktop todo apps (free) a try.

Now, with my tasks nicely cloud-synced across my Macbook and iPhone, I’m finally getting stuff done again, and I think it’s safe to check “find a new favorite productivity app” off the ol’ list.

Gorgeous body; super slim profile; al-lu-minium backside; yes, we’ve been fondling Apple’s new iPad mini for hours and hours now, and on our just-recorded special edition CultCast, we report what we like, what we don’t, and our overall first impressions of Apple’s brand new much-hyped tiny tab.

But we also had to ask the question: without a retina display, is the iPad mini a worthy replacement for its larger, retina-pixeled brother?

We cover all that and more this special edition CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

This week at Apple, two important executives just got picked off the tree, and on our newest CultCast, we’ll tell you what the departure of long time exec Scott Forstall and the just-hired John Browett means for iOS, OS X, Apple Stores, and all the great Apple products you adore. Plus, Jony Ive’s about to get even more design control over all the Macs you love to own, but the question is, is that a good thing?

Then, get out your lightsabers and prepare the X-Wings, we’re diving deep into the Disney acquisition of LucasFilm and what that means for everyone’s favorite space movies.

If this doesn’t end in another Spaceballs movie, we’re gonna be upset.

Subscribe to The CultCast now on iTunes, or easily stream new and previous episodes via Apple’s free Podcasts App. And please note, if episode 40 isn’t yet showing up for you, subscribing will fix that problem right quick.

Read on for the show notes!

A mere 6 months ago, I moved my glut of photography gear into a new, portable home: the Think Tank AirPort International Rolling Camera Bag ($350). Since then, I’ve been able to tote my equipment around easily, in style, but most importantly, packed snugly in a vault of total security.

I immediately loved it.

But as with most reviews, time tells how a piece of gear will really work. And now, with six months of carting the Airport International to and fro, I’m ready to report how it has performed over the long haul.

Galaxy Tab; Nexus 7; Kindle Fire HD—they’re all doomed, and on this week’s CultCast, we’ll tell why Apple’s new iPad mini will most definitely sit as the king of all tabs small.

Then, we review a new social iOS game so stellar, it’ll have you clamoring for Game Center friends just so you can get your fix.

All that and more on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream The CultCast via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Note: Some listeners have informed us that iTunes isn’t displaying episode 39 yet, but if you subscribe, it will show up and download just fine.

Onwards, to the show notes!

The iPad mini just left the land of make believe to become Apple’s hottest new gadget. And on our just-recorded special edition CultCast, we’re ready to reveal our first impressions of the mini’s smaller form factor, compact screen, and higher than expected price tag.

Plus, are you more than a little peeved that Apple just made their 7-month-old “New” iPad obsolete? Sure, the newly announced 4th-gen iPad the is great news if you didn’t just buy the now last gen iPad 3, but if you did, you’re probably none too enthused.

Our discussion on that and our other hardware first impressions on this very special edition CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream The CultCast via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

New, mini iPads; new, thinner iMacs; 13-inch Macbook Pros with Retina displays; you could wait till Tuesday to discover all the great products Apple’s about to unleash into the world, but that’s what grandpas do. Join us on our newest CultCast, and find out everything we know and expect from next week’s big media event right now. And, um, no offense to actual grandpas, cause I love grandpas, they’re the best.

Plus: 3rd-party lightening adapters and cables—they’d make great stocking stuffers, am-i-right? We’ll tell you when you can finally expect to see them in stores.

All that and more on our newest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream The CultCast via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Read on for the show notes!

I’m a borderline weather geek. I don’t just like to know the temperature — both inside and out — I even keep a hydrometer in my home so I can keep tabs on the humidity, cause you know, that’s important.

So naturally, when I found out about the Netatmo Weather Station ($179), I was a little excited. With its indoor and outdoor weather modules, the Netatmo tracks a lot more than just the current temperature. Plus, unlike my crappy $5 hydrometer, it relays all its readings in a unified way, presented beautifully in an iOS app optimized for both my iPhone and iPad.

Here’s how it works.

It seems like every time we get a new gadget from Apple, we spend the next weeks (and months) complaining about all the little features we think aren’t as good as they should be.

Well, the world has noticed what complainers we all are, and on yesterday evening’s Saturday Night Live, our bemoaning and grumbling was put in the proper perspective.

Thanks: Stephen

It’s back to the Mac on this week’s CultCast, and on our newest episode, we’ll tell you everything we know about Apple’s rumored 13-inch Retina Macbook Pro, and why you might be seeing it before the year is through.

Then, is Apple’s Passbook really going to take over the world of tickets, coupons, and payments? It’s tough to imagine, especially with how little Passbook can do now. But imagine coupons on your lock screen right when you need them and making payments with nothing but your iPhone. Ready to leave your wallet behind? Passbook may soon let you do exactly that.

All that and our three favorite Mac apps on our latest CultCast! Subscribe now on iTunes, or easily stream The CultCast via Apple’s free Podcasts App.

Read on for the show notes!