In 2013, Facebook tried and failed to create its own phone. Now Facebook has come back with a more considered vengeance, and announced today at F8, its developer conference, the inception of Messenger Platform, which will play nice with third party apps, and ultimately, I believe, achieve some of the results Facebook sought back in 2013. Facebook seems … Continue reading Facebook Messenger: The Trojan Horse
Facebook recently announced the rollout of a payments service which will be embedded within its popular Messenger app, leveraging its already-vast user base. This move was obviously a long time in coming, and it follows on the heels of Google Wallet, Apple Pay, and, most similarly, Snapchat’s Snapcash feature. I am certain that, down the line, Facebook … Continue reading Facebook Messenger, Now with Payments
The new Macbook took me by surprise: I didn’t expect it to come back, or at least not in its current incarnation. More specifically, I expected it to replace the Macbook Air on the lighter (and cheaper) end of Apple’s computer offerings. But given its $1,299 price tag, I think Apple will hold off for … Continue reading Pricing The New Macbook
We had a half of a Fairway baguette lying around the kitchen. Needless to say, my wife makes excellent croutons. Continue reading Croutons
Apple is running much-heralded ad campaign, showcasing the iPhone 6’s powerful camera in advance of the release of its new Photos app. This campaign fits with Apple’s larger advertising motif of demonstrating not so much its products, but what you can do with its products: Contrast this with the Android’s advertising equivalent of “speeds and feeds” — … Continue reading Shot on iPhone
So, House of Cards has clearly struck a nerve in the Twitter advertising world. It’s actually a little clever. Is @Frank_Underwood the man for the job? #HouseOfCardsSeason3 https://t.co/wvblf8aPKy — Monster (@Monster) February 27, 2015 Welcome back, Frank. See you in 10 hours, Twitter. #HouseOfCards #bingewatching #GoCommando pic.twitter.com/S1qzKd3Syd — Cottonelle (@cottonelle) February 27, 2015 Just knock … Continue reading Twitter Advertising Goes HoC
Two weeks ago, Starbucks announced that it would implement a monthly subscription plan for its newly-introduced high-end line of coffees. This comes on the heels of the coffee giant announcing the opening of its coffee mega-mecca, the Roastery, in Seattle, providing a destination for coffee worshippers to come, pray, and purchase at the origin of, well, … Continue reading The Three-Shot Espresso
Only one thing is for sure in this coy trailer for the final half of Season Seven. It’s the seventies. Beyond that, well, man, it’s anyone’s guess. Oh, and it’s in California. http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/19/8070705/mad-men-final-episodes-teaser Continue reading Mad Men, The Final Season
I’m always fascinated by firms that capitalize upon practical inefficiencies and piggyback on existing products or services. In both public and private realms, middleman firms pop up to smooth out the rough edges of transactions. Two recent examples: Tax prep software and parcel shipping apps. The recent kerfuffle over TurboTax’s price increase highlighted its dominant position in … Continue reading Exploiting the Usability Gap
Google recently announced that it was expanding Google Fiber, its gigabit internet service, to four new regions, for a total of 18 cities. Although the Fiber initiative has been around for a year or two, the recent expansion to a number of larger regions – including Atlanta, Charlotte, and Nashville – makes it seem as … Continue reading Now With More Fiber!
Silicon Spatula 