The American culture has a tendency to gravitate towards charismatic personalities. For all of the foundational principles of the separation of powers in the U.S. government, we have a bad habit of essentially handing over power to one party and then scratching our collective head when things go wrong. The same, unfortunately, is true in churches. The problem is the problem of monoculture.
The concept of an “app store” in which normal, everyday people easily download applications for their devices vaulted to the public consciousness two and a half years ago with Apple’s iPhone App Store. The store shook up the way people view and use mobile phones. The Mac App Store announced on Wednesday appears poised to be just as big of a seismic shift. This is not an attempt to simply make a little revenue on Mac software sales; it is Apple’s plan to translate iPhone and iPad momentum into a full-fledged attack on Microsoft’s Windows stronghold.
Up until a few short weeks ago, the name Terry Jones would have garnered blank stares from most quarters. Now, his back and forth plans to burn the Qur’an have elevated the obscure pastor into the most talked about clergyman of the season. Whether or not this burning or others like it actually proceed, those of us who claim to follow Christ must grapple with what people like Jones bring to the image of the Church and the Gospel.
Since Motorola’s Droid first arrived last year, the Droid fleet has been expanding at a dizzying pace. Now, just months after the excellent HTC Droid Incredible showed up, Verizon and Motorola have unleashed the Droid X and Droid 2. Over the last few weeks, we put the Droid X through a grueling variety of tests to find out if this mammoth phone has what it takes.
While traveling from place to place by car is hardly the glamorous thing it once was, it certainly has grown easier. As I went through Southern Missouri twice this week – once going down the Interstate and once back up via the remains of Route 66, I wondered if easier had any relation to better.
Henry David Thoreau famously wrote on life by a pond some one hundred and fifty-six years ago. As I sat looking out a window upon glistening water earlier this week, I realized quibbles with the transcendentalists aside, I too needed a Walden Pond.
It was a test of will power. When Apple unveiled the impressive iPhone 4 a few weeks ago, I said that I wasn’t going to buy one. I have last year’s model and that is quite good enough. I remained unconvinced.
The Microsoft KIN phones are a little hard to categorize. Built by the team that previously designed the T-Mobile SideKick line before being acquired by Microsoft, the unveiling of the KIN devices in April represented the confirmation of years of rumors about Microsoft producing its own Windows Phone. But this is not like any Windows phone you’ve seen before; instead, the KIN provides its own commendably trailblazing charm.
Updated As the time for Apple's next generation iPhone 4 to be unveiled at the company's WWDC event approached, something curious began to happen. AT&T started moving up existing customers’ eligibility to upgrade by six months or more so that even many of those who bought the iPhone 3GS last year under a carrier subsidy can upgrade again this year. What’s going on?
Early Wednesday, AT&T (NYSE: T) announced a dramatic revision to its data plans for cell phones and other Internet connected devices, most notably affecting the Apple iPhone and newly released iPad WiFi+3G. While some new limits have appeared, the attractive low-end iPad plan remains unchanged with a slight advantage over other devices on the network.