Best of 2010:

My ‘Best of’ list may help you save a few bucks next year, be more (or less) productive, or just keep you busy clicking links for a while.

Device: iPad
http://www.apple.com/ipad/
I take it everywhere. It’s my GPS, MP3 player and radio while I drive. It’s my pencil and paper at work, it’s my computer of choice, even if it’s not capable of everything I need at all times. My top uses and apps:

• Safari: Email and web surfing (including Facebook, Google Docs, and Google Voice)
• Netflix, YouTube, VLC Media Player, and TED Talks for video video video
• Twitter, Flipboard and Newsy for news
• Pages, Evernote, and Keynote for word processing and work
• Pandora and Clock Radio for music
• Sketchbook Pro and Adobe Ideas for drawing
• Kindle for reading
• GPS Drive HD and Maps for driving and directions
• Skype (with subscription) for phone calls

All around app: Google Voice
https://www.google.com/voice
This app is totally free (used in a browser) and has saved me $15 a month in texting fees by routing the SMS texts thru my email and data plan on my phone. I can also use the Google Voice app on my Blackberry to send or receive texts if I wish. I get my voicemail transcripts in email to read when I can’t take a call. It’s a game changer for saving money.

Biggest Surprise: Google Chrome
http://www.google.com/chrome
The most secure browser out there and perhaps the fastest one too. I now know why they made this little browser into it’s own operating system. I’m already living in it. Customize it with extensions and without the (Firefox) lag. Here’s a few I like:

• Google Voice – get notified and answer texts without leaving your tab
• Google Tasks – a to do list
• Google URL Shortener – keep it short, tweet from there
• Evernote

Music: Pandora/GrooveShark
http://www.pandora.com/
http://listen.grooveshark.com/
Everyone uses Pandora. The fact that it’s on every device I own makes it ultimately useful at all times. Gooveshark is another great web app where you can actually listen to the songs you want. I’m not sure how they are making this happen since it seems to be peer to peer (P2P) sharing. Make a playlist, listen to whole albums, Tweet a song with a tiny URL… all for free! Sorry iPad users, this puppy uses (ugh) Flash.

Movies/TV: Netflix
http://netflix.com/
I cancelled my cable bill this year and saved a bundle with Netflix on my Wii, iPad, and laptop. The streaming library is ever increasing and if you like TV, are willing to give up new content full of commercials, this is your last stop. My favorites:

• Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe (yes, I’m a sci-fi dork) – all seasons
• South Park – seasons 1-12
• Firefly, Dollhouse, and Buffy (the Whedon trilogy) – all seasons
• For the kids: Spongebob, Fairly Oddparents, and Invader Zim (ok, those are for me)

Game: Angry Birds
http://www.rovio.com/
2 Games, a bazillion levels, hours and hours of addictive fun. iPad/iPod Touch/iPhone and Android. Nuff said.

OS: Android
http://www.android.com/
Although I don’t own a device running Android, the fact that I want one so badly is proof that the fastest selling mobile OS on the market kicks ass. It has a huge development team, an open system, and took Linux from being a joke (sorry Linus) to what could end up being the most widely distributed OS of our time.

Movie: Inception
http://inceptionmovie.warnerbros.com/dvd/
Nolan’s best movie to date. Thrilling, conceptual, and an all around spectacle. Buzz Lightyear, Iron Man and Zuck didn’t stand a chance.

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Worst of 2010:

Devices: Google TV / Apple TV
The biggest let downs of the year. A device that could change everything. A device that could have brought the best mobile operating systems (Android and iOS) to our TVs and give us millions of apps to play with… instead searches our cable box for content and giving us more ways to pay for overpriced content. Boo. Fail.

All Around Worst App: iTunes
For the 10th year running: iTunes. What a beast. Slow to start up. Hard to use. Copying all my files to who knows where (whenever my hard drive is suddenly out of space, iTunes is to blame). Here’s an app by the maker of the iPad whose iTunes app doesn’t even perform the simplest task: subscribe to podcasts – i.e. automatically download new content. This year iTunes also introduced Ping, a social network (as if we needed another) for music. Note to Apple: Concentrate on usability and usefulness.

Music: The Social Network OST
My biggest gripe here isn’t with the music. I’m a huge Trent Reznor / Nine Inch Nails fan! My problem is with the price. Facebook is free. Everything Trent does is free. This is one piece of musical soundtrack that should have been free.

Movies/TV: Hulu and Hulu Plus
What a joke. Limited content, too many commercials, and an over priced app for shows that eventually expire. Hollywood really has to be reaching with this last ditch effort to save commercials. Forget it. Put a Pepsi or McDonalds logo (linked to a limited time offer) down in the corner and drop the commercials and the charge for the app.