Denver, the Mile High city, is now home to two Apple iPad 2 billboards. Spotted on April 2 in the Performing Arts District, these billboards are prominently featured in a high-trafficked area for potential buyers. Video below.

Dear Apple,

I am a big fan of design. I admire the talent & creativity at the world’s most successful consumer electronics company. Unfortunately, Apple’s standard USB cable is prone to failure from everyday use.

The picture below is the cable for my iPhone 4. I experienced the same problem with the 3GS. I take pride in the care of my devices. This shouldn’t happen. Why? Because you’re Apple. As consumers, we expect you to innovate better than your peers, impressing us with great technology and attractive design.

But this cable is just awful. Please make it better. It’s an essential accessory we shouldn’t be forced to purchase two or more times a year.

Regards,

Ronald Lewis
Author, Stick it to The Man

After a month of using Google’s Chrome OS and CR48 notebook, I’m convinced Microsoft cannot ignore the threat of Google’s Internet OS. So they should respond with ‘Internet Explorer OS’ to counter Google’s move on their turf.

Chrome OS with the CR48 is what I consider a ‘netbook experience’. I’m sure Redmond is busy building Internet Explorer OS. If not, they could have another ‘iPad problem’ on their hands. The ‘browser-as-an-OS’ strategy is a smart one and consumers will flock to it. Again, Microsoft can’t ignore this. They could use their own browser-based OS to up sell consumers to a Windows 7 Upgrade & application bundle. It could work.

In closing, I love the Chrome OS experience. It’s a joy to use each day, even with the occasional hiccups experienced using the development branch and prototype hardware (CR48). Everyday computing tasks are simple & to the point. Computers should be our friends — not our enemies.

Google is making incredible progress on an incredible computing platform.

To share my excitement for Square, I recorded this video on January 16, 2011 near Commons Park in Denver, Colorado. I thought my first video was horrible, hence the rush to get a new one out. As you can see in the video, I’m pretty passionate about Square. But I was born a disruptor. And I enjoy people who disrupt the old ways of doing things. I’m right at home.

There’s also a mini-interview for people to learn something about me and why I’m advocating for Square. This is an exciting project for me and one I’m honored to take part.

Who needs credit card terminals when there’s Square?

Join the Square reader revolution! Accept credit cards everywhere on iOS or Android.

The magical and revolutionary Square reader is perfect for splitting tabs, selling goods & services and much more!

To receive your FREE card reader & sticker, simply ‘@’ me on Twitter or contact me via my blog

*** Brownie points if you agree to record a short video about your Square reader.

It seems I now have another issue to contend with on my second iPhone: White dots (dead pixels) sprinkled about on its display. I noticed the defect earlier this week while scrolling through my list of applications. There’s about 4-5 of them currently and they’re visible only at an angle. Of course, I’ll be in contact with Apple soon to figure out a strategy to rectify this defect.

I’m sure I’m not alone with this issue. Anyone else?

Update: Apple replaced my iPhone — no questions asked!

Update (9-12-08 10:25AM Mountain): I’m updating my iPhone’s firmware to 2.1 and I’ve confirmed there’s a large number of white dots / dead pixels scattered about. It’s a little disappointing to see this in a phone that’s not even two months old, but it’s not the end of the world. Regardless, I do want Apple to replace this unit.

I mentioned today that I thought my iPhone 3G replacement was a ‘miracle phone’. For hours, the battery indicator remained at 100%, but soon, my gut instinct shattered the myth: My new iPhone 3G (16GB) was lying to me. Not long after, my iPhone suddenly complained that it had less than 10% battery life — All in a matter of seconds!

Read: Apple users note ‘battery bug’ on iPhone forum

Below are screenshots of the inconsistencies with regard to available battery life. You should note that depending upon the application and the status bar used, you’ll see a difference in the battery level indicated. On some screens, you’ll notice 100% battery life, while others show otherwise. Supposedly, Apple PR says this is a confirmed bug and will be fixed in an upcoming release. The best thing here is that it’s not hardware related and can be addressed via software.

Let’s hope that the purported 2.0.1 or 2.1 firmware release for the iPhone is released soon. Otherwise, there will be many iPhone 2.5G and 3G users whom are unsure of their phone’s battery life.

Update: It’s no longer the ‘miracle iPhone replacement’. Scroll down to the end of this post for the details

Due to a string of strange issues with my iPhone 3G (8Gb), I returned it yesterday to the Apple store and replaced it with a 16Gb.

The result? Nothing short of a miracle. My replacement has operated flawlessly and the ‘super battery life’ has left me pondering what type of iPhone I really have!

Look at the screenshot from my iPhone below (taken just minutes ago). It was fully charged yesterday afternoon with 3g, wifi, etc. all enabled. Regardless of all my activities last night (random apps, photos, etc.), the battery hasn’t budged on its full charge. I’m blown away by this fact, because my first phone didn’t even come close in battery life.

What could be the explanation for this?

Update (9:07 AM 7/27/08): My ‘miracle iPhone replacement’ just died of electrical thirst. My gut instinct told me that the phone wasn’t properly reporting its available battery life and sure enough, it was lying to me. I’m not sure what this means, but hopefully it’s not an issue. I’ll give it a full charge and see what happens next.

Update (10:19 AM 7/27/08>: It appears that the battery indicator noted in the first update is possibly a ‘software bug’. There are many other 3G users experiencing the same. I think I’ll hold out on the 2.1 firmware update and decide my next course of action afterward (I’m not really interested in visiting the Apple store for a third replacement).