$59 for a tablet! Business People Rejoice!

It's time for the business community to rejoice.  Tablets have now reach the point of an easy expense.  A California company is now offering a reasonably powered tablet for only $59.  I will open your eyes by giving you an example of what the smart entrepreneur can do:

You have a small restaurant with 10 servers.  Pay $600 for each of them to have a tablet and place videos of each item on the menu on the tablet.  You cannot imagine the impression to a customer that you will be able to give off  when you show a sizzling steak on the 7 inch screen of this tablet.

This is just one idea, let your imagination tell you how you may incorporate them into your business.

Resources:

MatrixOne

Keep up with your Favorite Business Podcast with BeyondPod

As I build my small business , I have focused on a few things to discipline myself to do on a consistent basis.  These things I feel will eventually benefit me as I go forward as an entreprenuer.  Some of those things are :

• Working out 3 times a day.
• Writing this blog.
• Listening to podcasts for entrepreneurs.

Of the three , I have found that consistently listening podcasts about business has contributed to keeping me focused.  As a result, my podcasts manager app of choice , BeyondPod has become the number one application that I use on my Android device.  Some of the highlights of this apps are:

• You can schedule podcasts to download at specific times of the day.
• You can import and sync you podcasts with Google Reader.
• It includes it's own internal media player.

Once you have purchased the app , here are some must-have podcasts for the entrepreneur: 

Rise and Grind

A straight talk (Rated R) podcasts that focuses on the mentality that is needed to make money.  The host is Daniel Freeman, a business owner and author of " How to Make a dollar out of 15 Cents", who preaches the urgency of financial independence.   It's clear that his goal is to not be a motivational speaker , but a source of actionable information.   Click here to subscribe to the Rise and Grind Radio show

Dream Chasers Show

Hosted by Will Lane , I found his podcast very inspirational.  He has a number of different guests on his show that give different perspectives on starting a business. Subscribe to the Dream Chasers show by clicking here. 

Help Start my Small Business

Hosted by brothers Joel and Neil , this pod casts bring together both information packed episodes and guests that motivate.  I found this podcast yesterday and went through several while working out.  I found that some of the things they talked about like a one page business plan and building a profile of an ideal customer, were so valuable I felt bad that it's free.  I highly recommend you go here to subscribe!

Plot out Your Empire with Mindmeister

People process information in many different ways.  For those that process information easiest by creating diagrams, Mindmeister can help you visualize your empire.  Mindmeister is a web application that has an Android component which allows you to do tree-like diagrams where one item braces to the next.  This is great for me when planning businesses, as it gives me a visual representations of how the business needs to be set up and the and the details that relate to it .

The service is free for a limited amount of diagrams.  The Android application is also free, and stays consistent with the look and feel of the web application.

Resources:

MindMeister Web App
MindMeister Android Application

Your Next Million Dollar Idea is in Jeopardy

Ideas are the fuel for the hustler. The bad thing about some ideas, is that they don't usually come when you're sitting at your desk, ready to jot them down in Microsoft Word.  They often come while you're on the toilet , in the shower, in bed or driving.

Capturing your next million dollar idea is important , so here are some ways for you to get those ideas saved FAST :

1. Hovernote -Hovernote is a note taking program like many others , but what sets it apart is that it (as its name implies) hovers over your screen when using it.  This comes in handy because you can open Hovernote and  leave it open in your notification bar until you need it.  When you want to jot something down , you simply pull down the notification bar and start typing.

2. Google Search "Note to Self" feature - Native in the Google search utility is a little known feature that allows you to take quick notes.  To activate it you simply have to hold down the search button on your Android device.  The voice prompt will come up and you will dictate your note by starting with the words "note to self".  After your note is taken, you will be placed in an interface allowing you to send the text of the note that you just too plus the audio to your email.  Make sure you create a filter and note label to organize these messages and you are good to go.

Become an Android Supreme Multi-Tasker

The world is a fast and furious place. The global market-place has made things so competitive, that it is necessary for you to do multiple tasks at once. Knowing this, Google has baked in multi-tasking features , but developers have taken it a step further and made it possible to do a number of tasks in slick ways.  Here is a list of the top three apps that I have found:

1. Swipepad Free - Swipepad is app that allows you to launch apps by swiping your finger on specific regions on your device. I find that it is the best because it allow a lot of flexibility on how you want to initiate it.

2. Dock4Droid $1.79 - Dock4Droid is very reminiscent of the dock on the Mac Operating System.  I find that it is very visually pleasing but not as feature-rich as SwipePad.

3.  QuickDesk $0.99 - QuickDesk is a very simple application that locks on to the home buttn double click function.  It is the most simple of the three but also the most limiting.  Use this if you are new to Android and not looking to be overwhelemed with features,

Read all Your Favorite Sites Like a Magazine with Currents

If you are a person that is busy and money-minded , you will have websites that you frequent for your daily information.  Some are heavy into stocks so they hit cnbc.com , or you may have more underground sites that you use to guide your hustle (riseandgrind.com) .  Regardless of the site you can view them in a consistent magazine-like format using currents.  Currents is a rss feed reader just like Google Reader , but this brings a much more readable interface to the table.  It is a free app and needs to be experienced to understand how awesome this app is.  Get it now from the link below.

Currents on Google Play 

The Tablet Wars - Which One is Right for You?

As consumers, there is nothing more beneficial to us then when companies war for our dollars.  This is a huge reason why we have seen so much competitive pricing in gaming and why innovation has been pushed so far.  I guarantee you, if there were only one video game console out there, it would be $500 and the experience would not be nearly as good. Similar to the console wars the Tablet wars have emerged with four essential players, the iPad, the Microsoft Surface, the Nexus 7 and the Asus Transformer line.  I will not go deep into the specs on each , but my goal with this post is to match which consumer should be purchasing each tablet. 

The iPad

This is the tablet that started the new generation of tablets.  This one is the most easiest to use and are great for the non-techie and people who are elderly... (I'm just keeping it real).

Microsoft Surface


The surface has yet to hit the streets, but this is obviously a tablet made for the corporate world. If you spend a lot of time in Outlook and live by your Office suite, this will be the tablet for your work/business life.

Nexus 7


The Nexus 7 has a smaller form factor than the previosly mentionsned and smaller price tag at $200 (starting).  The Nexus 7 will be a great tablet for students and techies.  The customization and speed makes the techies happy and the book-sized form factor is a great text book replacement for students.



Asus Transformer Line

Asus' Transformer line are very powerful and were the first to master the integration of a keyboard. This is going to be for those who are techie and are also business minded.  










Regardless of which tablet you choose, you have a good amount of choices that ensure that your needs are met.  The hardware for all of these are fast and efficient enough to rely on. So now is the time to add one of these devices into your life, you can't go wrong with any of these.


Resources:

Asus
Nexus 7
iPad 
Microsoft Surface

Ways to Incorporate the Google Nexus Tablet into your Business

The tablet world is about to make a big leap in the coming months.  The up and coming release of the Nexus Tablet, with it's current specs and fair price tag of $200.  The pricing of their tablet is nothing new , the Amazon Kindle priced at $200 at launch as well.  Where Nexus Tablet will differ in its impact is that it is running the native Android 4.1 "Jellybean".  This matters because the developers will now have a device that will sell very well and it becomes and incentive for them to create more applications.  For most, the lack of great programs has been the missing piece with Android ,  with this new tablet that will all be rectified.

The business minded will benefit greatly to this lower price tablet.  Here are a few ideas for how to incorporate this tech into your businesses:

Restaurants - When someone is in your restaurant wants to know the special, a great way to do this is to give your waitress/waiter a tablet and show the customer a video of the food.  Video of a sizzling steak is much more powerful than any picture of one.

Doctors/Dentist offices - Showing patients health information and x-rays on a tablet can really keep a patient's attention and drives your points home.

Car Service - One of the most unsettling thing about getting your car fixed is that you never really know if the people servicing your car are telling the truth or robbing you.  Take a video of how damaged that engine is and show them the video.  This will increase your credibility with your clients and separate you from your competitors. 

Resources : 

Gizmodo

Droid-life