Everyone’s going on about the new Kindle 3 and how you can annotate the book you’re reading, download Audiobooks, mp3s and play Sudoko … Meh! Too “try hard” IMHO. Also too many moving parts – more to go wrong. Here’s why I like the Kobo v2 and the iPad v1 …

All my Kobo (ver 1) does is read ePub formatted files – and it does that pretty well. I have since purchased a Kobo v2. which has wi-fi functionality and more robust software. I don’t use the wi-fi.

Unlike the Kindle, on a Kobo, I can load up books from anywhere. It’s not tied to the one store. They have one available via wi-fi, but you are not obligated to use it. Prices are getting better and are comparable with the very cheap Amazon store. Rarely is a book over about $10. Newest releases can be more. But the Kobo store NOW has fairly reasonable prices. And it reads ePub files.

The Kindle. You can convert Kindle books using special software, but until they sort out DRM (digital rights management), you’re likely to bump into trouble. Kindle uses .azm file type, but will also read .mobi. It won’t read the non-DRM ePub format (ePub is an open source format based on html (like this page)). However, you can now go to Guternberg.org and download free Kindle-optimised books. Because html is text and .ePub = the text of a book + a book cover image (.jpg file) zipped into the one .zip file, You can store hundreds of books on a 1Gb Kobo. For the geeks out there, try renaming “twilight.epub” to “twilight.zip” and check out what’s inside the zip file. It’s mostly text. This means that ePub files can be compressed to make them really small. Really tiny!

I had to take my Kobo 1 back to the shop after about a month of really hitting it hard. I read 3 novels back to back before the screen froze. One year on, a charge lasts about one day or 5hrs of use. Tech issues aside, for $99 I still think it’s the best value e-reader on the market. Why? Well for one thing, it’s not locked to any provider. I can transfer any old eBook or PDF file onto the Kobo. There’s no syncing with proprietary software or downloading from a special store (you can do that but it’s really not necessary). Apple and Kindle products can also read open source, but they don’t make it particularly easy. The Kobo 1 shows up as an external drive and I drag stuff onto it. That’s it. Like any digital device, it starts to slow down the more you put on there. If there’s an SD Card in the slot (it can read up to 2Gb) then that shows up as a separate drive when you plug the Kobo into your computer (via a non-proprietary mini USB to USB cable). A full SD card slows the Kobo down considerably. I like to transfer ePubs to the Kobo itself and PDF formatted eBooks onto the SD card. But the emptier you leave the device, the quicker it runs. The Kobo 2 seems to run smoother, but the build is basically the same.

Which brings me to PDFs. PDF isn’t so good to read on small readers. I wouldn’t like to read a PDF on the smaller Samsung Galaxy because I’ve already been frustrated trying to read on the small-screen Kobo.

The iPad excels at displaying PDF files. In fact, that’s all the reason I needed to purchase one. It’s about the right size for US Letter and A4 pages and PDFs looks great – especially those with colourful diagrams, photos and graphics. On the Kobo, you have to scroll with the big blue “up / down / left / right” button which is a Royal pain. Similarly so with the small-screen Kindle. And because Kobo and Kindle are e-ink (as opposed to fast-reacting back-lit LED pixels) page scrolling is sloooow. On the iPad, it’s very easy to move a PDF page about and the 132 pixel-per-inch resolution is pretty glorious (a basic computer monitor is about 72dpi-100dpi).

The iPad has its faults. It HAS to synchronize with stupid iTunes in order for it to work! Everything runs, updates and loads via iTunes. Plus many apps can still crash the iPad. So, with a lot of apps, the iPad crashes as often as a PC IMHO.

I had to take my iPad 1 back to the Apple store after a week. I’m suspicious of over-wrought customer care policy in all its forms. Especially when products are presented as being a part of the new “family” – Urgh! Within a week my screen dropped down to 256 colours and became fuzzy – like a badly tuned TV. What annoyed me most was that I had to “make an appointment with an Apple Genius.” The Apple Genius Bar is basically a row of about 5 or 6 early 20s male nerds at the back of the Apple store. To give credit where credit is due, my Genius admitted there was nothing he could do and handed me a new iPad. Interestingly, the exchange invoice I signed was for half the cost of what I paid, which to me, reveals their profit margin at around 100% markup. I have since purchased an iPad2 which freezes all too regularly. A friend of mine also had to take his iPad2 back because the button was a bit dicky. So I’m liking the robustness and better build quality of my iPad 1.

Three months after purchasing a Kindle 3, the very fragile screen cracked. Because it feels much more delicate than the Kobo, I kept my Kindle in a gel-cover embedded in a leather holder. That was inside a padded bag and yet the screen still cracked. Kindle were quick to send me a replacement, but the fragility of the device – along with its very sticky on / off button (the first button became sticky very quickly and now this replacement has also turned sticky). The Kindle feels like it wants to be jack of all trades, so I’m starting to admire the Kobo for its simplicity.

The Kobo has no “loyalty.”

Kobo does have its own “store” (and all the same world domination aspirations as Apple I’m sure). They’ve basically released a generic 1Gb Hard Drive onto the market that just happens to have a pretty cool 6″ e-ink screen attached to it. Unlike my iPad, I can manhandle the Kobo. I can, literally, chuck it in my backpack without a cover and not worry about the screen cracking. It’s not quite the Princess that is an iPad. “She” gets wrapped in a t-shirt or tea towel and then into a deep inner-pocket if I’m cycling somewhere. The Kobo is right up the back – on the fall side. I’ve dropped it onto hard floors several times and my cousin – who has a Kobo 2 (with w-fi) – confirms that it’s pretty robust. One day my Kobo 1 will break my fall and I’ll prolly still be able to read novels of it.

Reading on an eReader

As a reader, the Kobo 1 & 2 are great. It hangs a bit, battery life is crap after a year and page turn is not as good as the Kindle 3, but the Kobo is not pretending to be a multimedia device. IMHO that’s admirable. The Kobo 2 is … just a A$100 reader. I haven’t tried the touch-screen version. It doesn’t do PDFs very well but you can read them. Sony and a whole bunch of other eReader companies seem to have out-priced themselves in this market.

The iPad isn’t the greatest thing to read a novel on, but unlike the Kindle and Kobo, it lights up at night – which is when I get my reading done. Up until recently, copyright issues wouldn’t allow me to read my Kindle books on my iPad Kindle app. But now that Asimov SF magazine and Philosophy Now are wirelessly delivered to my Kindle app, there’s almost no reason to use the Kindle. My iPad 1 is a bit heavy and the screen’s a bit bright and computery – and if you fell asleep and dropped it, the beautiful glass may crack – but he iPad is a solid multimedia all-rounder and unlike the Kindle or Kobo, I find myself using it daily.

The Kobo’s size and light-weight makes it okay to chuck around and it would easily survive hitting the pavement. If you want to read plain, black and white novels – definitely buy an e-ink reader. Because the Kobo 2 will now be cheap (now that the touch-screen version is out) maybe get that. You could probably fit the entire works of Harry Potter onto it and it would slip easily into a handbag or largish pocket.

The iPad is ultimately as good as its apps, but it’s also great to read at night. You can get the Kindle and Kobo apps on it anyway, so I find myself reading the iPad. The iPad 1 is a bit heavy in bed but suits the couch fine for surfing the web, faffing around with music apps and reading in the dark. For games, music, videos and artwork – the iPad is possibly the best multimedia player on the market. I originally wrote this review on my (replacement) iPad. The keyboard is a lot more responsive than I thought it would ever be and I’ve always loved the beauty and silence of Apple’s products. No glaring fans or hot knees. Having said that, a laptop’s clunky keyboard is probably more practical to write on than the virtual touch-screen type.

Here, in order of what I’d get first knowing what I know now…

1. iPad v1.
2. Kobo v2.
3. iPad v2
4. Kindle 3
5. something else.

I pretty much don’t use the Kindle, but I DO use the Kindle app on the iPad a LOT! Now that Apple has stopped Kindle linking to their own store in app, I find myself using the Kindle app even more (perhaps out of spite). I buy neither books or music from the price-inflated Apple store. I also use the Kobo app as it comes with a free version of Darwin’s “Voyage of the Beagle” which I got half way through a couple of years back. I’d also be interested to see how Kobo’s reading community idea evolves over time. You can see the functionality in the Apple Kobo App.

Hope these reviews were of use to you.

Enjoy your device!

WRITER: Nicholas Stoller
DIRECTOR: Nicholas Stoller
CAST: Jonah Hill, Rusell Brand, Rose Byrne, Sean Combs

Aaron Green (Hill), a record company intern is charged with the task of accompanying his idol, out-of-control British rock star Aldous Snow (Brand) from London to a tenth anniversary concert at L.A.’s Greek Theater. The event could save Snow’s nose-diving fortunes and it could establish Green’s career. However, getting the wily, sex-addicted, substance-abusing rocker to stick to any kind of schedule will take all of Green’s patience and ingenuity.

GET HIM TO THE GREEK is the latest feature from comedy producer extraordinaire Judd Apatow. The movie is an offshoot, but not a sequel to 2008’s FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL. It takes the character of British rocker Aldous Snow (Brand) and puts him centre stage in a rollicking buddy/road movie with Apatow comedian-of-the-moment Jonah Hill.

The Snow character, who was an unexpected highlight of SARAH MARSHALL, is constantly in motion, filled with the idea of the moment and in search of any drug he can lay his hands on. He is essentially a powerful child who has to be looked after and pandered to by the younger Green whose lack of job and life experience means he is in way above his head. However Green has great tenacity and genuinely wants to see his childhood hero resurrect his career with the Greek Theater concert.

Is Aaron Green merely Aldous Snow’s minder or is he the man who will put him back on top? Is Snow his mentor or is he just using this ‘affable twit’ from the record company? GET HIM TO THE GREEK cleverly plays every variant of this relationship while simultaneously taking pot shots at celebrity culture and the entertainment media. There are amusing cameos (Lars Ulrich take a bow) and a barrage of pop culture icons are name-checked in the rapid-fire dialogue between the leads and the supporting characters.

The film successfully revamps the Apatow formula of foul-mouthed male comedy with a heart. It delves into anal humour while at the same time making points about relationships. It has fun with drugged-out excess while saying that Snow has destroyed his career with this kind of self-indulgence. As in all of the better Apatow films, you can have your cake and eat it.

If like me, you were less-than-impressed by Brand’s television stand up in PONDERLAND, then you may be put off from seeing him on the big screen, but as my movie-buddy pointed out, he is a lot funnier playing a scripted version of himself. Brand is in fine form here. Writer/Director Nicholas Stoller is intelligent about how he uses his non-acting leading man and does a similarly good job of directing P-Diddy in the role of alpha–dog record company boss Sergio.

Jonah Hill has been labelled by some reviewers as a kind of Seth Rogen lite. This underestimates his considerable acting skill and comedic timing. Time will tell what kind of range Hill has or if he will always play a variant of the same role, however he knows how to inhabit a character and not just go for the gag. MAD MEN’s Elisabeth Moss has a small but memorable role as Green’s girlfriend, a hard-working doctor who desperately needs sleep. Australian Rose Byrne acquits herself well in the role of Jacqui Q the model/singer of questionable taste and talent.

While watching the movie I was constantly reminded of the 1982 comedy MY FAVORITE YEAR directed by Richard Benjamin. Cue IMD synopsis: “It’s 1950′s New York and the age of live television. Benjy Stone is a young writer on a major comedy-variety show. He is assigned to chaperone that week’s guest Alan Swann, a faded (British) movie star and renowned womanizer and drinker. Benjy’s job is to keep Swann sober and above all, make sure he shows up for the live broadcast on Saturday evening.” Is there a long drawn-out Hollywood lawsuit in the offing? Let’s wait and see. Why not check out both films and improve your pop cultural cred?

GET HIMTO THE GREEK is slick, middlebrow entertainment that manages to keep the laughs flowing for its entire length. Screening now in Australian cinemas.

This review can also be found at mrtrivia.net

DIRECTOR: Jon Favreau
WRITER: Justin Theroux
CAST: Robert Downey, Jr.Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Gwyneth Paltrow ,Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson
RATING: 2.5/5

Weapons manufacturer Tony Stark’s identity as Iron Man is now public knowledge. After six months of keeping the world safe from war, Stark finds himself pitted against his Russian arch nemesis, Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) and corporate rival Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell).  Whiplash wants revenge for past wrongs, Hammer wants to defeat Stark in business and is ruthless about pursuing his ends. Stark is also under investigation from the US Government which doesn’t want a weapon so powerful as the Iron Man suit in private hands.

IRON MAN 2 is the sequel to 2008’s excellent  debut movie that introduced filmgoers to billionaire playboy, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jnr). IRON MAN gave us the most rounded character portrayal of a superhero since Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker in SPIDERMAN (2002).  Although, Tony Stark was fortunate in having the kick-ass suit and all that money,  his problems didn’t make him all emo and dull like Bruce Wayne they made him all passive-aggressive and smart-mouthy. This was part of the joy of this character. Even when he was having a bad time, we were having fun.

Director Favreau and Robert Downey have preserved much of the flavour of the central character, but unfortunately the rest of the film is filler; explosive, expensive, extensively computer-generated filler.  Favreau clearly knows a thing or two about directing actors and when your cast boasts Mickey Rourke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Sam Rockwell and Samuel L. Jackson, then giving performers of their calibre thinly sketched characters isn’t too much of a risk.  Scarlett Johansson’s performance  consists of her looking beautiful and then pulling out the combat moves. She achieves these things with ease, but not much interest. Cheadle takes over the role of Colonel James Rhodes formerly played by Terrence Howard.

I was in another screening on the weekend and I overheard some dyed-in-the-wool comic fans talking about how much they enjoyed IRON MAN 2. They enjoyed seeing the character of Nick Fury, the introduction of SHIELD. They were also thrilled at the image of the new Thor that had been released earlier in the week and they were very happy that than an Avengers movie is in the works.

For Marvel fans this future franchise material must be exciting, but for the average film-going schmo, it’s beside the point. I don’t care that a Captain America movie is coming unless it has a strong and convincing story to support the character. For some fans just the embodiment of their favourite superhero in a big budget movie is enough to make it worth shelling out their $18.00.

However, as a comics non-fan, I would have liked to have seen the depth of Tony Stark’s character suggested in the other characters.  I wanted to care more as Iron Man geared up for battle.

The film is the work of professionals, but some of the sparkle and interest of the first Iron Man seems to be lost amidst the big budget fireworks and flying scenes. There’s a whole plotline hinted at for Mickey Rourke’s backstory involving Tony Stark’s father, the interesting ambivalence that is suggested, is dashed by the very black and white truth that is later revealed involving these powerful figures from the past.

The things I liked about the movie were that Stark and Pepper’s (Paltrow) bantering relationship is taken up another notch. I also enjoyed the big industry shows that Stark and Hammer preside over. It felt as though these were styled to parody the ‘Master of the Universe’ antics of Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer or Apple’s Steve Jobs.

If you liked the first Iron Man film,  then you are likely to enjoy this one. Unless you’re a nit-picking curmudgeon like myself.

The iPad is coming to Australia. But will it live up to the hype? It has some serious issues and, to my mind, may just be Apple’s final hurrah. , you need to be really close to your wi-fi hub in order for it to work. This problem can’t get fixed with a software update because of a tiny receiver behind the screen and most people use the iPad on their laps / cushions etc. – further reducing the signal.

Whatever you think about Apple as a company, they do tend to come up with 100% usable products. I would go as far as to say that they are a company more into usability than the technology itself. The fact is, that for most Macs, you are spending nearly double what you’d spend on a PC with the same specs. I’m not writing this to add to the PC Vs. Mac debate. They are both massive companies who seem to behave like little babies. Perhaps that’s what competition at this level does to us. At the very successful release of the iPod, Bill Gates (most probably in a fit of jealousy after his Zune music player bombed) announced that Microsoft were no longer going to support Internet Explorer (IE) for Mac computers (Ne-ne-ne-ner-nerr!). And the black turtle-necked Steve Jobs comes over as an absolute tyrant when it comes to secrecy about his latest Mac products.

In short, time will be the great leveler, but the issues with the current iPad seem to be getting worse by the day. We’re in a world where products are realeased way before they are ready. It’s cheaper to get your loyal (in the case of Mac, super loyal) customers to do your testing. They’ll prolly upgrade to the later version anyway. I’m going to wait until the iPad (which should retail here for around $650) has been around for a few generations before I buy in. In the meantime, keep watching.

Steve Jobs’ Six Sneakiest Statements
Jobs: “Flash Will Murder the iPad”