House prices rising (image via Shutterstock)

Inman News looks at the latest Zillow Home Value Index to roll-up the top 10 metros for real estate values, comparing February 2012 with last February. Read more….

Our friends at Business Insider seem to agree with a trend we’ve been noticing over the past few months. Residential real estate now seems to be emerging from the abyss. BI’s chart on housing starts show that we’re on the bottom now and on the cusp of seeing a recovery later in 2012 and beyond.

Take a look at the full article on BI’s web site.

Remember the hype? There was plenty of it. When Apple released the first iPad a little more than a year ago I was skeptical of how this new toy would change the world. Even though I have been an enthusiastic user (evangelist) of Apple Computer since 1986, I assumed this was another consumer oriented product.  But today, I believe the hype was justified.

Let’s define a few things

“Tablets” used to be based on PC operating systems and had all the capability of a laptop. I carried the first real Tablet all around the country in 2005 and literally stunned audiences. New “Post PC” Tablet (aka Slate) devices are based on mobile operating systems (like Apple iOS and Google Android). We could explore all the nuances of Pre and Post PC Tablets technologies but I rather consider why this new wave of computing makes really exciting  tools for business.

I’ll reference  just two models – the Apple iPad 2 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. (by the way a new study suggest the iPad is expected to dominate the market until 2015).

Unlike a laptop/notebook PC, new Tablets offer business users some major advantages and I believe there are advantages that justify a fundamental shift in mobile computing.

Seven Reasons

• Weight – they are light and effortless to carry around (approx. 20 oz)
• Portability – the overall dimensions fit in even the smallest attaché (approx. 10”x7”)
• Visuals – high resolution backlit LCDs generate superb eye candy (132+ pixels-per-inch)
• Touch – forget the stylus, multi-touch is natural and efficient (more fingers are better)
• Fast OS – instant on access and no “lag” (1 GHz Dual-Core Processors)
• Power – the latest batteries can last 8 to 12 hours (I use mine for several days)
• User Interface – if my mom can navigate with ease, anyone can (love you Mom!)

The “not to be ignored” bonuses include; front and rear cameras, Bluetooth, GPS, mapping, social networking, heck – mobile web browsing is still unbelievable!

Really Untethered

I guess the most important enabler of all Tablets is wireless connectivity. Wifi has been around forever and most business users have relied on mobile wireless (3G) access for many years now. The new crop of Tablets all include 4G LTE wireless (expected with iPad 3 this year). This 4^th generation network allows for speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second. I know lots of serious business operations that don’t have anything near that bandwidth!  Plus the nearly unlimited power of “The Cloud” (more in a future post), and these simple devices are true “game changers” for business computing.

The Apps

But to truly unleash the potential of this powerful, sexy hardware a critical component has to be added – software.

The quantity and quality of the third-party applications from both the Apple and Google (iOS and Android) app stores is staggering. Granted most of these are mindless games but there is an increasing volume of serious business software emerging. This includes a plethora of alternatives for the entire desktop office suite (word processing, spreadsheets, etc.), communication tools, file sharing and much more. Ultimately, the greatest potential for Tablet software is to leverage advantages of being mobile along with the real time data of back office systems.

The new legal pad

Simply because a Tablet is a larger device than say… your mobile phone,  you can effectively use this tool to “present” ideas to another person. That’s the key for business! Sharing ideas, explaining problems, selling something! Forget all the analog print materials. Keep PowerPoint slides hidden in your laptop. Engage your decision maker face to face and let the Tablet become your new collateral.

At BrightDoor, we have been focused on the convergence of all these factors for the past year. To really empower our customers, a Tablet solution has to be completely integrated into a CRM database. Incidentally, we released our first iPad application – BrightBase Explorer this week.

Make it your own

When you combine the paradigm shifting power of this hardware, the interactive benefits of great software, wireless connectivity from almost anywhere and intelligence of a Cloud based CRM, you have concocted a recipe sure to change the world!

Go buy a Tablet today and embrace your future:)

There is an interesting article in www.clickz.com this week titled: “F-Commerce, the Arrival of the Facebook Consumer“ by Janice Diner

She make the argument that Facebook commerce is a subset of social commerce and e-commerce, referring to commerce executed on or influenced by the Facebook platform. Commerce off Facebook (on other sites) is commerce that takes advantage of Facebook’s Open Graph, allowing shoppers to sign into Facebook from any online site with a PC or mobile device.

More than half our customers are seriously investing in (at least exploring) ways to leverage social media. The impact and growth cannot be ignored. According to USA Today this week, Facebook now has roughly 500 million users – 250 million of whom are on the site every day. The average user has 130 friends. Each month, people spend a total 700 billion minutes on Facebook.