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  • The Paradox of Consumer Choice
    A few years ago I read a book called The Paradox of Choice: Why Less is More by Barry Schwartz. His anecdotes were insightful and pointed to truths about the amount of choice the free market has laid on us as consumers. Of course free markets and consumer choice should be good things, but there are certainly experiences I have had where the overwhelming sense of having too many options made it difficult to actually make a decision. I related to much of what the book was saying, particularly with the experience of picking out a DVD to watch from my massive collection. I recall staring at a wall of DVDs and having the most difficult time deciding what to watch. The decision-making process when faced with so many good choices was simply immobilizing.  
  • The Future of PC and Mobile Processors

    I've spent a lot of time with a number of hardware manufacturers recently, trying to get a glimpse into the next generation of processors and the ways in which they'll impact future gadgets and PCs. In all my meetings, one term has arisen time and again: SOC, or system-on-a-chip.

    Traditionally, chips have been created independently and then coupled together to provide multiple computing features. For example, a manufacturer would create a core processor like an Intel Centrino with a built-in Wi-Fi radio, and then attach that to a systems board, perhaps linking it together with a separate graphics co-processor, in order to deliver enhanced PC graphics. Another might take an ARM core processor and then add on additional features like extended graphics to enhance device functionality.

  • Apple's iPad: Live up the Hype? It Will....
    It was interesting to hear all the chatter after last week's iPad launch. Most reactions I heard from other analysts and media were lukewarm at best...which was what I expected. If you think about it, how can anything live up to the kind of hype leading up to this launch? But there was a lot missed in the media about the event and the product that I hope to share in order to maintain our perspective on not only the iPad but on Apple and their products.  
  • Innovation Abounds - CES 2010 Post Show Analysis

    This year's CES was very interesting. I had felt for the past few years that CES was sorely lacking in the innovation department. But this year it looks like things have changed in the technology industry. Technology companies have realized that to reach the consumer the pace of innovation needs to accelerate, and this year's CES was a start in that direction.  Several things stuck out that I'd like to highlight:  

Online Services and Ubiquitous TV

Written by Ben Bajarin Wednesday, 05 August 2009 01:31

With the 2009 MLB season around the corner I thought I would share more on my experience canceling TV service to get all my TV for free online, well almost free.   Streaming all your shows online has one huge bonus that the service providers can't offer you.  That is "Ubiquitous TV."  Meaning TV anywhere you want it, or anywhere you can connect to the Internet, which is quickly becoming everywhere.   When I travel now I don't have to miss out on my favorite shows while my wife watches them at home.  

Sling Box offers similar capabilities but often doesn't work when someone is watching the one box at home and the other wants to connect to it from somewhere else.   What streaming shows brings you is the ability to watch them anywhere at any time.  It is truly TV anywhere and I have found that end of the experience to be great.    However where streaming TV shows for free leaves off is where the service providers really come in and that is premium TV services.  

I've looked at the cost analysis and have concluded for my TV watching needs it is cheaper to simply purchase the services you are interested in, instead of subscribing to outrageously high cable or satellite bills and getting them bundled.

 So all though I am getting all the shows I watch for free I will be subscribing to MLB.TV for $79.95 a month.   This will bring with it all the benefits of ubiquitous TV as I can watch games on the road as well as at work.   Something I couldn't have done without a Sling box setup before.   I also subscribe to ESPN 360 and get all the college sports I want online.   So the only thing left for me to figure out before the fall is how I am going to get the NFL online, preferably live.   There are archived ways of doing this but I like to watch my sports in real time.  This is why previously cable or satellite was the only way to go.   Quickly though I think the sports leagues are learning that streaming services can be an incredibly profitable way to move forward. 

 

 

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