iPhone breathes fresh air, Hulu here, creepfactor high

So yesterday Jeremy was asking me my opinion on replacement smart phones.  He is getting ready to replace his which is long in the tooth.  He is doing his normal Jeremy thing, paralysis by analysis.  He has considered a large number of phones and asked my opinion on a few of them.  Of course my ultimate opinion is “just get an IPhone, they’re great”.  Well of course he has no interest in following my advice.

So anyway yesterday the phone of the day was the HTC Evo 3D on the Sprint network.  The Evo has all sorts of gee whiz features, many of which you will use one or two times, say they are “cool” and never use them again, like taking “3D” pictures that can only be viewed in 3D on the Evo.  He also mentioned how the Evo can act as a personal wi-fi hotspot.

Now lots of phones today can act as wi-fi hotspots.  The catch is the carriers want to charge you for this as an extra service, even if you pay for example, ATT’s “unlimited” data plan.  That is bullshit to me.

Well for whatever reason, this phone discussion with Jeremy got me thinking about jailbreaking my Iphone.  WTF is that you ask?

An Iphone in it’s standard configuration is rigidly controlled by both ATT and Apple.  Although you have access to hundreds of thousands of apps on the Apple store, you only have access to apps that THEY approve.

When you jailbreak an Iphone you are loading code that removes these restrictions, allowing you to load whatever you want on a device that you paid for.  I mean wtf, how would you like buying a computer and only be able to load things Microsoft says you can?  Or buy a car and have the wheels welded in place so you can never change them if you so desire? Sounds stupid doesn’t it?  Yet this is the business model that consumers have come to accept with their smart phones, especially from Apple.

When jailbreaking the Iphone was first introduced it came with an air of mystery, a seemingly daunting task best left to hardcore hackers that weren’t afraid of bricking(breaking) their phone.  However over the years this process has gotten more and more simple.  I had always steered clear of jailbreaking my phone because I just had a lingering image of it being a pain in the ass.  Well I finally got around to it yesterday.

After doing some investigating online I found out what I needed to do to accomplish the break.  I also found out that it is practically without risk as reverting a jailbroken phone back to normal state is as simple as doing a restore in Itunes.

Once I had the stuff I needed the total process took less than 10 minutes to accomplish.  The most difficult part of the procedure is making sure you do the combo button hold and releases on the phone properly to put it into the right mode to accept the jailbreak.

Once it was done the phone rebooted and came up normally.  All my apps were still there, everything looked the same except for the addition of a new app that is the jailbroken version of the App store, allowing you to easily peruse applications on the “open” market.

Another concern I had previously with jailbreaking was I thought it somehow would limit my “normal” use of my phone, stopping me from using things like Itunes and the regular App Store.  That concern was unfounded, I can still use these things just like I always could.

After seeing how easy the process was I regret not doing it much sooner.  Don’t get me wrong, the Iphone 4 is a fantastic device even in it’s prisoner form.  Now that I have released it from bondage I expect my appreciation of the device will only escalate.

Yesterday I finished watching Boondock Saints on my 360, I’d give the film a B by the way.  Anyway when I was done I was messing around in my Xbox dashboard and saw the free month of Hulu + promotion.  I figured I would sign up, why not.

Much like my trial with Netflix, I was immediately impressed.  Hulu and Netflix step on each others toes in some regards as some movies/programming are available on both services.  Hulu however really excels in current network programming, something Netflix just does not have.

I can use Hulu to watch network programming from Fox, ABC and NBC on demand as well as some other cable networks like Comedy Central, Sci Fi and many more.  If I look at this logically, it becomes more and more difficult to justify a Tivo.

With a Tivo I have a local copy of the show on my drive that I can watch IN MY HOUSE and if I feel like jumping through some hoops I could export the video files to other devices or watch it remotely using something like a Slingbox.  If it was 2005 you would say that was AMAZING. Tivos also break, pretty regularly.  The hard drives in the units take a beating.

Well now compare that to just having all of that programming available ON DEMAND without you having to so much as lift a thumb.  I can watch Hulu/Netflix on tons of devices, none of which are confined to the walls of my home and I don’t need to jump through a single hoop to get there.

There are only a couple remaining advantages I can put in Tivo’s corner.  Having the content on the local hard drive, delivered via cable or in my case, an HD antenna means you aren’t depending on an internet connection for your programming.

A Tivo also excels in quickly advancing through shows to exactly what you want, as in no commercials.  Skipping ahead or back in a video stream is clunky at best.  Hulu tv streams typically include commercials that you really can’t bypass although they are much shorter than what you would see in regular tv broadcasts. (minute tops)

Tivo is walking on thin ice with me.  I have two Tivos that I pay more than $20 per month for a service that is losing more and more value with me every day.

I read some of the transcript of Weiner’s Facebook communication with one of his many virtual girlfriends.  Yep admittedly, it was pretty damn creepy.  But again, I would offer up politicians and sexual escapades are pretty much the norm.  I mean WTF, JFK, regarded as one of the best presidents ever was a known hound.  Teddy, the respected senator, had the same MO.  Bill Clinton enjoyed an occasional intern BJ but the country flourished under his leadership.

I really am surprised at the fake surprise and outrage that comes up when such a situation is revealed again and again and again. All these people in glass houses need to put away their bags of rocks.