After much hype, supposed leaks and predictions, Apple announced the iPhone 4S. No iPhone 5, just the iPhone 4s. Many people are disappointed that the company didn’t rename the 4S to a 5. Frankly, for Apple, that’s not much of a surprise. They did the same thing when they went from the iPhone 3G to the 3GS. The device looked the same, but the internals were brand new.

While most of the upgrades in the iPhone 4S are standard — newer camera, faster processor, etc., the biggest improvement of the device is Siri.

Apple purchased Siri a while ago. Between that time and yesterday, not much had been done with the product. However, Apple revamped the application and made it part of the core functionality.

And, frankly, it is impressive.

It recognizes accents and it learns who you are.

For those claiming it’s voice recognition technology — they couldn’t be more wrong. It is much more than that. And it will continue to evolve over time. Voice recognition technology is good for dictation and not much else. On the other hand, artificial intelligence (Siri) is a complete game changer.

As far as rest of the enhancements go — meh. Not big enough.

Last year, I wrote a fairly lengthy post about the state of the entertainment industry. Fortunately (for me), most of the predictions in the post held true. And, they will continue to hold true for the rest of 2011. Digital media has taken an interesting step over the past couple of months — for the worse. The volume of independently produced content is through the roof and the competition in this space is aggressive.

As someone who now works on the financial side of content — advertising — it’s hard to justify spending a considerable amount of money on online video. Why? It’s too expensive and not engaging. Here’s what’ll matter in 2011:

• Social: Facebook and Twitter are obvious first steps, but they’re also the only reliable platforms in the social media space.
• Mobile: It’s a challenge to find non-smart phones. With a phone coming out every few weeks, the market is now mobile heavy with an aggressive push on mobile content and services.
• Tablet: Unlike mobile, tablet is still very new. However, with very few reliable players in the market — it’s a good place to be involved from a content creation or syndication standpoint.

Here’s what won’t matter in 2011:

• Online video: It hurts for me to say this, but it’s true. Content discovery on the web is just way too difficult and there is a lot of content being produced. The chances of finding an audience and then monetizing it is nearly impossible.
• Loyalty: In this case, loyalty means something very different. It means not sticking to one mobile platform. Android is growing faster than ever and Apple is countering nearly every move. Sticking with one platform only is a recipe for disaster.
• Fluff: A lot of people are saying that the bubble is back. It may be, but there’s a reason why some initiatives get funded while others do not. Fluff. Investors and users are very restrictive when it comes to spending money. In this market, there is no room for fluff. Sadly, most companies created in the past few years do just that — create and sell fluff.

A few months ago Netflix announced that it would be made available for iPhone and iPod touch users. As of this morning, the app is now supported on these devices. Unlike the iPad, this is not the full fledged Netflix interface. It is very similar to the XBOX 360 interface where users browse by categories. If you can’t find certain content via the iPhone/iPod touch, I’d suggest adding that content to your Instant Queue from a computer and then viewing it on the device. As far as what this means for Netflix? It opens up an entire market of new users for a very limited investment. Huge potential and now a significant bargaining vehicle.

I purchased the Google Phone (aka: Nexus One) the first day it was available and have effectively been an Android user for almost 8 months. During that time, I’ve used the phone for email, web, trading stocks, IM, photos and gaming. Having used all versions of the iPhone (until 3Gs) and most versions of the recent BlackBerry till the BlackBerry Bold, there are certain things that I like about the Android platforms and certain things that I dislike about it. Here are the top features I’d like to see for Android 3.0:

1. Release cycles: By making the Android OS available to cell phone manufacturers all over the world, Google has considerably fragmented the Android mobile market. There are too many models with varying feature sets and functionality. Every month, a new Android phone is available that is either worse or better than the prior one. There is no consistency. Google really needs to find a way to co-ordinate the release cycles or at least implement some policies regarding core feature sets.
2. Stability: Over the past 3 years, I’ve used Apple and BlackBerry mobile devices. All of these devices have been extremely stable. That is not the case with the Nexus One. The stability of the device is terrible when compared to the iPhone and BlackBerry.
3. App Market: The Android app market is a mess. It is incoherent and good apps are hard to find. Google really should simplify the mobile app market and make it easier to better discover applications.
4. User Experience: For those who aren’t aware, nearly every Android phone has a different user experience. While this is good to a certain extent, it is also extremely frustrating for the general consumer. A vast majority of the user experience has to be streamlined and similar across different Android phones.
5. Media capabilities: While the Android phones do have the ability to play music and videos, the functionality used by the device is ancient. You store content on an a card, plug that card into the phone and then access media. This is rudimentary and has to be unified. The one reason Apple succeeds with its mobile offerings is because the iTunes and iPod ecosystem are always synchronized.
6. Technical support: Just like any other smartphone, Android phones aren’t cheap. When you purchase them without a contract, they’re priced at more than $500 (US). For this price, there needs to be a dedicated customer and technical support center that is more capable than the service provider.

I realize that the recommendations in this post are operational suggestions rather than software enhancements. However, once these items are improved, the Android platform becomes far more valuable than any mobile offering available.

Given the high demand of the iPad, it is sufficient to say that the device has been a success in its first year. Companies from across the media and entertainment spectrum have created applications or sites for the platform. These include the Netflix iPad application, the ABC Player, and a host of newspaper and magazine applications.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, the company mentioned that customers will be able to access HBO on their iPads.

In six months, HBO Go will be available to the channel’s paying subscribers at no additional cost through all major cable systems, on Apple Inc.’s iPad, on mobile devices and elsewhere, Kessler said.

This doesn’t come as a surprise. HBO has been slowly expanding its distribution opportunities. A few months ago, it released www.hbogo.com in pilot mode. Access to the site is limited to subscribers from Comcast and Verizon FiOS only.

While the details of the mobile application are currently unknown, it will be interesting to see if HBO releases a separate pricing structure for mobile/digital only subscribers.

In the past day many tech publications have covered the launch of Flipboard, an iPad app that allows consumers to view content in an interactive way. The company officially calls it a “social magazine.” Here’s how the app works:

1. Install the app on your iPad.
2. Add your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
3. Select content feeds from a pre-determined list.
4. Click on the feeds you’ve added (including Facebook and Twitter) and browse through your content.

Content appears as an interactive magazine.

For example: Many people use Twitter to share links and other content. Clicking on those links gets tiring after a while. Flipboard solves that by presenting the Twitter feed and links in a magazine format.

Many people have said that this application is the future of news. In its current stage, it isn’t close. Here’s what the application needs to do in order to reach that potential:

• Allow RSS feeds.
• Enable dynamic media — photos, videos, etc.
• Give content publishers a chance to build their own “Flip” system that is displayed within the app. These modules should be able to support paid content.
• Grow beyond the handful of content that is offered.

The concept is good. But, many news publishers have created and distributed apps that are similar to Flipboard. At this point, it is a long way away from being a newspaper replacement. But, so far, it is one of very few apps that has true potential.

Apple TV has been around for a few years. Apple considers it a hobby. Passionate users consider it their media portal. Despite it’s price, it doesn’t do much. You load up your iTunes library and Apple TV will stream that content to a connected TV set. That’s great for users who invest in Apple’s content. Many prefer less restricted options, including Amazon MP3, Kindle and Video on Demand.

After looking at media consumption apps on the iPad, the next Apple TV should be today’s iPad.

Think about this for a second — for an iPod touch priced product — you get the ability to stream your iTunes library as well as access content from companies like Hulu, Netflix and ABC.

Today, the biggest issue with video on demand and/or IPTV is that it requires too much hardware. Certain devices are good at one thing, while others are good at the rest. However, with the release of the iOS platform in 2007 and then the App store a few months later, the mobile space for consuming media has changed. Five years ago, people wouldn’t even have considered watching a full-length streaming movie on a portable screen. Today, that’s reality.

By creating a unified interface an in already established content space (iTunes store) and combining it with the power of the iOS apps, Apple can deliver an unsurpassed user experience and a complete media solution.

Imagine this:

• A user wakes up in the morning and reads her news on an iPhone
• On the train to work, she uses her iPad to follow-up on emails.
• At the end of the day, she comes home and all her content (text, audio, video, etc.) is synced and accessible on a 52″ TV.

Most of this already exists. The last step is the missing component (along with wireless syncing). At the end of a day, most people don’t want to view content on 4″ screen. With TV sets getting bigger, they should be able to enjoy their content without straining their eyes.

As a consumer, this would be the perfect solution and the next step for digital entertainment.

The iPad has been available for nearly 3 months. Developers have had a little bit of time developing for the device and so far, the potential seems tremendous. Initially, many content creators wanted to use the device to produce high-quality content. However, that has been limited. While there are certain content creation apps, such as QuickOffice and WordPress, they’re mostly temporary solutions. As the device progresses and developers innovate, content creation will be a reality. Today, it’s all about consumption.

For those who have adapted the iTunes media ecosystem — iTunes Store, iPod, iPhone, Apple TV — the iPad fits in perfectly. The same content works across multiple devices without any additional costs.

However, there are certain apps that improve the media consumption possibilities of the device:

Reeder

The application has been available for iPhone/iPod touch users. However, it recently made its debut on the iPad. Reeder allows users to sync and read their Google Reader content on an iPad. At $4.99, it’s pricey for a feed reader, but it’s the most elegant solution thus far.

Air Video

When it comes to supporting media files, the iPad will only accept a limited range of content. Furthermore, video files are large in size and sometimes you just don’t want to carry around all your videos. Air Video solves that problem. In simple terms, it’s an app that allows users to stream a wide variety of media files to your iPad. For $2.99, it’s highly recommended.

Air Display

Air Display is an innovative solution that makes your iPad a second monitor (or third) monitor. It’s a convenient solution that currently works just on the Mac, but a PC version is underway. For $9.99, it’s certainly cheaper than buying a separate monitor.

Netflix and ABC

Both these apps were available on day 1 and continue to deliver a wide variety of content for low (Netflix) or no cost (ABC). However, these apps only work in the United States.

Hulu Plus

Hulu’s recently announced premium subscription, Hulu Plus allows subscribers to view content on mobile devices, including the iPad. While it’s still being rolled out slowly, it’ll be a must have for cable cutters.

Have more media apps that you recommend? Let me know!

After much anticipation and rumors, Hulu officially announced Hulu Plus. Priced at $9.99 per month, it offers 3 distinctive benefits:

• Ability to watch content beyond the computer screen — mobile devices and TVs.
• Access to a wider library of content — back seasons and entire seasons.
• Higher quality content.

For paying subscribers, this means greater access to some of the best available content. However, it also means ads. Hulu Plus is

a new, revolutionary ad-supported subscription product that is incremental and complementary to the existing Hulu service. For almost all of the current broadcast shows on our service, Hulu Plus offers the full season. Every single episode of the current season will be available, not just a handful of trailing episodes.

Almost a year ago, I’d said that Hulu should launch a paid model. The predicted price point was accurate and most of the features were accurate as well.

However, concerns still remain:

• Advertising: Charging $10/month is fairly high when you have to watch ads.
• Content: Like Netflix, Hulu’s streaming library is not extensive.
• Revenue: Based on rough estimates, each studio will end up getting roughly $1/subscriber.

While the above are fairly minor concerns and could be fixed by content creators and Hulu, the largest concern is consumer adaption. For the first time, consumers have the ability to view content digitally via a subscription model. If someone is used to purchasing individual seasons on services like iTunes or Amazon Video-On-Demand, this is a great solution. For those who watch content for free, the price might be a stumbling block. Hulu will continue to tweak the service and it’ll be interesting to see how many people sign-up for the paid subscription. (prediction: 100,000 people by 2010)

It’ll also be interesting to see if the free product is made available to mobile devices.

This week, Steve Jobs announced the latest version of the Apple iPhone. Unlike other events, details had already been leaked by Gizmodo. Despite these leaks, Steve Jobs ensured that users would be surprised.

After analyzing the information for a few days, it’s apparent that this is yet another evolutionary change rather than a revolutionary product. With the exception of excellent imaging and high-quality display, the iPhone 4 does nothing substantial that other smart phones, most notably, Android phones cannot do.

One of the largest limiting factors for iPhone users in the U.S is the fact that the device is still tied to AT&T. Unfortunately, AT&T has significant reliability issues in major metropolitan areas. Had the device been made available on any other carrier, it might have been a worthwhile purchase. Being locked to AT&T also limits data transfer for new users. The carrier also charges an extra fee just to enable tethering, without providing any additional data caps.

Most of the features announced at the event had been revealed by Apple themselves at the iPhone 4 OS event earlier this year.

iPhone for Android Users

If you’re an Android user and are considering switching to iPhone 4, here are some important facts to consider:

- Unlike most other carriers, AT&T has started implementing data caps on new customers.
- Multi-tasking has been available on Android phones for years.
- FaceTime only works on WiFi. In such circumstances, Skype might be a better option.
+ The new camera and imaging systems are excellent.
+ The App Store continues to thrive and still has a strong lead over Android.

To learn about the iPhone 4 from 2 different perspectives, check out this podcast.