MobileViews Blog

Category: Apple

  • Fender USB Stratocaster Guitar: Broken oddball cable connector

    fender_usbstat_HA153The Squier by Fender USB Stratocaster Guitar is unique among Fender’s legendary guitar series for a couple of reasons:

    1. It has a USB interface that lets it work with the iPad and iPhone.
    2. It is only available through the Apple Store.
    3. It has an oddball Apple 30-pin connector to mini-USB connector cable.

    This last item has caused a bit of grief for a good friend of mine who is notorious for taking meticulous good care of his gear. This is the only 30-pin to mini-USB cable I’ve ever seen. So, if it breaks, it is difficult to replace (aside from using a Rube Goldberg collection of adapter cables). And, break is exactly what it did for my friend. You can see his photo below. The mini-USB connector completely disengaged from the cable.

    Fender no longer even features a product page for the guitar. So, one has to wonder what is going on there. However, it is still listed as available through the Apple Store. So, my friend’s next step is to contact Apple and Fender to see if:

    (a) This cable breakage is covered by some kind of warranty since the guitar was only introduced in November 2012 and my friend bought his a few months after that.
    (b) If a replacement cable can be found anywhere.

    fenderusb_sy_2

  • Podcast 61: What’s going on with Apple’s stock price?




    Podcast Powered By Podbean

    In MobileViews Podcast 61, Todd Ogasawara, Jay Stone, and Emil Reyes (none of who claim any expertise in investment) wonder aloud and speculate about the steep multi-month decline in Apple’s stock price. It closed at $702/share on September 19, 2012. And, its share price on January 25, 2013 was $439.88. That is a $262 price drop in four months for a 37% loss of value.

    FYI: Emil runs a 3D printing design business. You can find some of his recent work here:

    “Make Me That”

  • Microsoft HelpBridge for Android, iOS, Windows Phone: Connect quickly after a disaster

    Microsoft released free apps for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone to request help or offer help (in a variety of ways).

    Download a Lifeline: New Disaster Response App Launches

    The HelpBridge mobile application simplifies the process of notifying loved ones by simultaneously sending an e-mail and SMS to the communities you select & posting a message to your Facebook wall. You can even include your GPS coordinates so that message recipients will know where you are and the circumstances surrounding you.

    The apps are named HelpBridge.

  • MobileViews Podcast 60: Waze, Motion X Drive, Flipboard, comiXology, Angry Birds Star Wars




    Podcast Powered By Podbean

    Todd Ogasawara and Jay Stone discuss Waze and MotionX Drive navigation apps for the iPhone and iPad, Flipboard, comiXology, and Angry Birds Star Wars (which we learned is a recent favorite for both of us).

  • $15 Incipio Dual Pro iPhone 5 case looking good so far

    I just received a Incipio Dual Pro for iPhone 5 case. I’ve holding out hoping to find a decent affordable case with a belt clip for the iPhone 5. But, with no prospects available, I decided to spend $15 on this case which has a 4.5 star average customer rating on Amazon (80 reviews).

    The case comes in three parts:
    1. Film screen protector
    2. Rubbery inner case that covers buttons (on/off, volume) but not ports or the cameras.
    3. Outer hard shell to project the back and sides

    The film screen protector was reasonably easy to apply. You can see there there are cutouts to expose the front facing camera and select button. The soft inner case was easy to pull onto the iPhone 5. It does not stress the phone at all. The outer hard shell case holds everything in place and provides a bit of added protection.

    It looks and feels pretty good so far. And, at $15, it is very affordable.

  • Faulty iPhone 5 Lightning USB cable drawing too much power when not attached to anything?