iPhone vs Android (understanding the market).

Who cares!!!! If you can formulate an opinion on the products and understand the nature of the businesses you will be a better investor as you understand the communities, you understand the products, and you use the products leading you to have a better understanding on the effects of news developments in relation to the businesses.  Yes, you could invest in upstart bio-technology businesses, but if you do not understand the nature of the activities a business conducts you could lose a lot of money on speculation and misinterpreting information….which essentially makes you a gambler.

Allow me to quote the great Peter Lynch and the great Warrant Buffet via Ryan Guina:

“I can't think of anyone better to look to for investment advice than Peter Lynch or Warren Buffett. Lynch and Buffett are legendary investors who have amassed billion dollar portfolios through sound investment strategies, one of which I want to share with you today.

Peter Lynch, the legendary portfolio manager from Fidelity, is famous for offering the advice, "invest in what you know." Famed investor Warren Buffett often refers to investing within his "circle of competence" when discussing how he and his partners invest. "Circle of competence" may not mean much to you, but what Mr. Buffett is really stating is, "invest in what you know."

Buffett and his partners famously sat out of the Dot-com Bubble in the late nineties because technology wasn't a field he was comfortable with. While others speculated on technology start-ups, Buffett was scooping up value stocks which had fallen out of favor. A few short years later the bubble crashed and investors went back to the value stocks Buffet had been buying all along. Buffett not only avoided substantial losses, but he made money because he stayed true to investing in what he knows. The idea of investing in what you know is not a new concept, but it is worth repeating because it is solid advice and can help you avoid serious investing mistakes.”  (http://www.usnews.com/topics/author/ryan_guina)

And for those that care about my opinion on iPhone vs Android read on:

My Take on Google

Google is an ad company that uses you browsing data, email data, and/or personal data to send you targeted advertisements to generate revenue. Google is not as reliant on consumer products for success as opposed to Apple. Hence, Google can have an open source operating system (you don’t have to use Google services on an android) where you can have alternative apps stores (Amazon, Samsung and 1mobile to name a few) and not deal with Google services at all. As Tim cook from Apple said, “you’re the product” for Google”  (http://gadgets.ndtv.com/internet/news/tim-cook-to-google-users-youre-not-the-customer-youre-the-product-594242 ) because a business that gives things away things for free will find a way to generate revenue for their business by some means. Google has an official app store that people choose to use, which makes it extremely easy for Google to constantly crank-out updates for Android even though they made it an open source project. Google got people to buy into the idea of an app store like Apple, yet Google gave people a way out from under its thumb. People wanted a Google ecosystem, which gave Google an easy way to profit off of ads because people want to use the official Google App store to buy/download apps which requires a G-mail account. However, Google even allows you to delete a Google Account (even set an inactivity timer to delete the account and email important info to another person if so desired) unlike Apple’s stuck for life ICloud/Apple ID which is a plus for Google in terms of privacy in my opinion. Google accidentally controlled the Android market place and will challenge any app makers to use alternative app stores to generate similar revenue. Also, Google is now in the position to challenge device makers to use another operating system and therefore Google can set the standards for the hardware used with Android.

Personally, I feel Google is in communications takeover mode so they can distribute ads in new ways.  I feel they will become a MVNO to provide cellular service and possibly an internet service provider over LTE. I think Google can go where Clear wireless's Wimax has failed consumer wise. Wimax signals have a hard time penetrating buildings making it hard to receive the signal outside of a modem/hub at home…cell phones struggled to pick up Wimax connectivity across the board. Google already has its hand in internet and television services through by way of Google Fiber, so a strong presence in being a communications service provider is not a far stretch.  And based on Google historical love for targeted ads….Google may even use their hoards of personal data for targeted TV ads in the future that go beyond the current demographics of a show and the time that a show airs.

My Smartphone Usage

From 2010-2012 I used Android as my first smart phone because I was a fan of Gmail, Youtube, and Google search. I felt open source was the way to go because I remember Apple losing to Microsoft in the 1990’s. Elementary school had Apple computers and the Real World was using Windows…and when I got my first computer in 1997 (not counting the hand-me down one from 1996 with the big floppy drive, DOS, monopoly, and a red power switch labeled 1 & 0) it was a Windows 95 computer. I was using a word processor at home for elementary school papers (4^th and 5^TH grade it was write in cursive or Type it out) prior to a computer. However, at that time I did not realize Microsoft was simply a licensing genius and that they could provide high functioning software on relative cheap systems compared to Apple. Microsoft was closed software, but open hardware in terms of compatibility and up-gradable parts.

And on an unrelated note since I have not been into computers games since half-life/counterstrike/team fortress classic, unreal tournament, quakes etc in the early 2000 as FPS have improved on game consoles to a level I did not need a mouse & keyboard. I only used my PC entertainment wise for instant messaging, music, web browsing, and social media most of last decade. Flash forward 2014 I only need a PC to stay current with Microsoft Office on a windows environment as it is still the defacto business standard. Most job agencies and some companies still test MS Office on Windows for competency. Maybe Microsoft in the very near future can keep the software standard across windows, mac, Chromebook/web versions so people can stay on top of the features. Microsoft being consistent across platforms is important so kids that may have only used Google Docs and MS Office Online grade school through college do not look stupid when applying for a job depending on the field as Job agencies and companies do not test Google Doc skills.

Anyways… by 2012 I was frustrated with android phones be it speed, apps crashing every day, battery life, and the displays based on the Froyo and Gingerbread phones I had on boost mobile and sprint. I switched to an iPhone in 2012 and did not look back until the end of 2013 when I used an Android temporarily with FreedomPop as I knew iPhone was coming very soon.  I used the Samsung Epic Touch 4g and used the Samsung victory LTE....and they changed my opinion on Android being a viable mobile operating system as of Jelly Bean.

However, during my experiences using Android and IOS (Jelly Bean and ios 7/ios8) for the last several months in the iPhone 4S and Samsung Victory LTE respectively; I feel the iPhone is still the superior phone today…but Android should be the future. I feel the iPhone is better today simply because of the quality and selection of apps. I understand the importance of customization and widgets for those that like them (Personally, I cannot stand more than a weather or music widget) but apps makes the phone at the end of the day and iPhone is superior in everyday app design & everyday stability. I prefer the design of IOS apps and some apps are only available on IOS…Android still has a ways to go. See the comparison below:

iPhone has number of members in twitter list

Android does not have number of members in twitter list

My Facebook (Paper) page looks cooler on iPhone

My Facebook page looks mediocre on Android

Hyperlapse on iPhone

Hyperlapse ain't on Android 

Infinity Blade Trilogy on iPhone

Android has that amazing game Epic Citadel instead of Infinity Blade

Chrome has back button at the forefront on iPhone

Chrome for Android has the forward button hidden in the menu

Google Drive on iPhone has a status bar so you can monitor progress

Google Drive on Android uploads without indication of progress

 I like Android because I am not locked into Google Services and can easily see the things that are synced online with google sync manager plus I can delete a Google account and start over for any reason under the sun. iCloud/Apple ID is permanent though I can switch the Apple ID to another email address, change various info in iTunes, delete all my cloud emails, and then destroy the email account of the apple ID (requires some work). Also, I like Android because I can render my phone effectively useless with ease by un-syncing all of my person info if someone needs to use my phone, I like that I can have multiples of the same shortcut if apps fit business & personal groupings, and I like the Fact that Android Lollipop will support multiple users so I can easily separate my environments be it personal or business.

Lastly, I like Android because smartphones are like computers and I assume smartphones with interchangeable parts for upgrades could become popular just as they were with a desktop PC.  And with interchangeable parts we can create powerful phones and save money by only upgrading certain aspects of the smartphone. However, that concept would require certain standards for cases and that companies find it profitable to produce parts for the upgrades. However, the likely hood that smartphones with interchangeable parts taking off is slim as most laptop parts are not interchangeable beyond upgrading ram or a disk drive...and laptops are a portable that has been around much longer than the smartphone. PC Upgrades were driven by gamers the most…and Android is lacking in the quality of apps department as it stands. Hey, but it would be cool to pick up parts at a 24hr Wal-Mart if a camera broke or a screen broke. Plus having spare antennas is feasible as cellphones are the lifeline for many that do not want to bear the cost of a home phone and it could be a matter of life or death… though it is recommended to have an extra smartphone/cellphone in the house as all phones are able to call 911 without paying for cellular service.  I do think the key to smartphones with interchangeable parts ( http://www.xda-developers.com/android/project-ara-android-l-hot-swap/) is emerging markets as I was shocked to find out smartphones ( by watching Bloomberg and CNBC) were some of the first home/personal computers for many people because of the cost. Due to such matter of facts in emerging markets, interchangeable smartphone parts would be a good way for people to reduce expenditures compared to upgrading an entire smartphone.  

Conclusion

Android should be the future as I expect big-time developers to have their own apps stores/websites since they would have the capacity to not rely on Google play services and therefore increase profit margins. I believe companies will be able to provide their own operating system without Google constraints because they will no longer need their play store as people will be able to get games directly from developers. People will just rely on reviews and comments on app review sites for information….plus developers can advertise their apps through social media, advertise through internet ads, and advertise through through traditional outlets of newspaper, radio, & television. I will hang on to my iPhone or at least have an iPod touch until the potential of Android is realized beyond having a larger market share than iPhone... Unless of course HTML5 ( http://www.infoworld.com/article/2610329/mobile-development/forrester--html5-apps-still-not-as-good-as-native-apps.html )  apps dominate smartphones to render smartphone platforms and computer platforms useless as in simply the devices being reduced to televisions with a Brand Label.

***BRAIN EXPLODES***

Look Before You Leap (starting point for investing)!

Do not leap into investing without a basic knowledge/foundation of the fundamentals. You need to get into the proper business and/or financial mind frame as well as understand a few basics before you proceed to invest.

I recommend starting with Bloomberg TV on a Saturday Morning to get a feel for business and/or finance as it is full of easy to digest programming and motivation to be successful in general. Also, Bloomberg TV has the stock ticker from the Friday close, which is composed of important areas in which you should be aware of the price. If you do not know how to read the stock ticker on Bloomberg TV and/or recognize those few basic symbols use this as a time to educate yourself. Use the internet to learn the simple skill needed to read those quotes and use the internet to look up the symbols. Why not tell you the meanings of the ticker in this blog post!!??!?…research and doing homework is part of the game. If you are not willing to do this level of homework then stop reading my blog and take your money to the financial advisor down the street for a fee and be oblivious to the stock market. And even if you still decide to seek out a financial advisor you should have your own opinions, your own understanding of the stock market, and should be able to take over your money if the financial advisor retired tomorrow.

Plus you need to understand the basic information on a generic stock app for your phone or on a website as it is the best way to get live quotes without logging into a trading platform as a retail investor. Please be aware that numbers outside of the price quote can be different across websites and different across apps because of rounding and calculations. Yahoo/apple stock app for examples calculates P/E using trailing twelve month along with an intraday figure while the Bloomberg app only uses trailing twelve month. P/E is an important ratio and in layman terms it indicates the amount of years to double your investment all things remaining the same. 

Then you should watch Mad Money on CNBC to get a better understanding of stocks and personal finance weekdays at 6pm (5days per week). Once you watch Mad Money you will have a better understanding of the conversations that take place during the day and how it pertains to your possible investments. Any terms you do not understand please look up the info on a credible website (my preference is www.investopedia.com).

Finally, follow financial news organization such as Forbes, CNBC,Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg etc. on social media… therefore you can have access to news, access to articles, and access to breaking news when you are not watching TV.  

Power to The Investors!!!

                               

                           

Power to The Investors!!!

Penny Stocks (historically, not as result of a flash crash) and Binary Options are Gambling. Best of luck on ya come up! Let me how well that technical analysis over 1hr works out for ya! I do not educate on gambling.

A Trader is a Trader, but all Investors are Traders. Investors use technical analysis for entry points and we ride the volatility because of the fundamental analysis. An investor will take on Trader qualities when we hedge the volatility with Derivatives, hedge the volatility with Commodities, and hedge the volatility with Forex to increase our return. But never ever shall an Investor ignore the fundamentals for simply a quick come up!

Real World Definition: Joe Flacco may play the lottery, but he is invested in football for the long haul. He is not retiring to wheel system the mega million. He is simply hedging his future against his contract not being fulfilled….

Power to The Investors!!!

There are legitimate opportunities to make extra cash with limited skills…and on your own time to boot.

Why get an after work job in retail or struggle to write freelance articles for pennies per word? There are plenty of legitimate mystery shopping opportunities and legitimate search engine evaluator opportunities that pay a decent amount of change at your convenience. I know a lot of people struggle to find such opportunities or have been a victim of a scam…and I am here to provide you with companies that are on the up-and-up from first-hand experience.  

Mystery Shopping

Go to: http://mspa.jobslinger.com/exec/sfs/jobboard and enter in all the pertinent information to conduct a search. Click on the jobs you find interesting and sign-up with the company. All of the missions listed with MSPA are legitimate. Compensation for assignments vary and landing an assignment is on a first come first serve basis. I would suggest signing up for multiple companies to have to most chances to complete assignments. Also, I suggest creating a separate email or folder from your day-to-day emails to stay organized. MSPA certifications don’t mean much as experience determines if you can land larger assignments…and there are a ton of entry-level assignments. Be sure to check out the main website for MSPA http://www.mysteryshop.org/ to educated your-self on some aspects, but you will ultimately be dealing with the individual mystery shop companies. It takes two months to get paid, but you do get paid! Follow the instruction on each assignment, type in proper English, and meet the deadlines….so you have nothing to worry about.

Assignments entail creating slightly detail narratives of the events and answering relevant questions.  And below are some examples of acceptable narratives that I have received pay and therefore you can get an idea of the requirements.

For a Parking assignment:

“I arrived at _____________ at 11:59am. I attempted to press the gate dispenser for a ticket, but it did not function. Then the booth attendant greeted me and provided me with a ticket. The attendant was a 40ish year old female that had shoulder length black hair, heavy-set, and brown skin.

I drove to the booth at the same place in which I entered the garage at 12:50pm to pay. The same woman I saw upon entering was at the booth. I handed her my ticket, but she could barely read the time because it was faint. The attendant asked me the time I entered for parking and I told her the ticket said 11:59am. The attendant told me the price would be $3; I gave her $10 a received correct change of $7. Then the attendant gave me a receipt and thanked me for parking.”

For a Drive-thru assignment:

"I got to Roy Rogers at 1:49pm. There was neither a message board sign nor a Roy Rogers sign in the parking lot.  The outside was in superb condition....trash dumpster closed, shrubbery was neat, and grass was neat. However, the trash bin near the drive-thru was overflowing.

I entered the line at 1:51pm. There was a car in front of me so I had to wait 38seconds to get to the speaker. The menu was functioning properly and I did not notice any spelling issues. The female that answered the speakers said, “Hi, may I take your order?” I asked for the 3piece chicken strip. The female on the speaker asked if I would like to make it a combo and I agreed and asked for a sprite to drink and fries for the side. The female asked about dessert and I declined. The female on the speaker told me my total was $6.46

Once I got to the window after waiting 3minutes and 15seconds ______ told me my total was $6.46 and I handed her $20. _______ also asked if I would like any dipping sauces and I asked for BBQ. ______ gave me correct change of $13.54. I waited an additional 2mins and 15sec for my food after getting my drink. _______ then handed me the bag with the Roy Rogers logo facing me and thanked me for my patronage.

The food was nice and hot. The chicken was nicely seasoned the fries were hot. The Sprite was mixed properly. I would recommend that Roy Rogers to anyone. “

Some mystery shops agencies pay you through PayPal while others use checks…And here is an                   example of a check:

           

Search Engine Evaluator

Kyle at the penny hoarder sums this position up very well:

http://www.thepennyhoarder.com/how-to-get-paid-12hour-cleaning-up-googles-mess/

 Due to the nature of the job I cannot give further details, but you can definitely make a few extra thousand per year that you can use to get your personal finances in order or use towards investments. And with that extra money head over to the shop so you can gain financial independence for a lifetime!

Picking a Trading Platform is NOT a Random Draw From a Hat.

Once you develop an investment strategy the next step is to choose a trading platform that gives you the best price and best research based on your needs. If you plan to be an active trader the cheapest trade commission/fees may be your best options. However, if you are a passive trader that plans to invest in ETFs for the foreseeable future a trading platform without commission on ETF’s and a trading platform without inactivity fees may be best suited for your needs.

“As much as one online broker might seem much the same as another at the most basic level, even a brief side-by-side comparison illustrates the broad diversity in costs, benefits and requirements.

Some of these services ask for as much as $5,000 minimum to open an account, on rare occasion even more. Others impose no minimum at all, allowing you to dip your toes into the investment market with however much you are comfortable risking.

Usually these brokers will look to recoup the difference in investment size by charging more per trade. Meanwhile, some online brokers are willing to offer you hundreds of free trades as you become accustomed to the interface and the nature of trading.

Some services specialize in entirely different fields - though the focus is usually on equities and direct investment in companies, options, futures and other types of derivatives are a growing field of investment even for comparatively casual traders.

Where you go, and even what you want to look for, will depend entirely upon the strategy you develop for your investments before you even start to really compare online brokers.

You should certainly look at what kinds of options you have available, so that you can use different cost structures and requirements to inform your investment strategy. But choosing a broker before you know how you plan to use their services might leave you with a strategy you aren't actually comfortable with, or a broker that's ill-suited to your strategy.

While it may take some research, investing your time now in comparing brokers will save you grief when you're actually investing money.”

Read more:http://www.nasdaq.com/investing/online-brokers/#ixzz368g7vKYO

I recommend http://www.brokerage-review.com/ as a starting point for online brokerage comparison. Also, it is good to research fees for closing an account and transferring an account just in case you need to switch brokers as your investment strategy changes or you need a different trading platform to better fit your needs.