My iPod Touch

This morning I attended the 1st Philippine Society for Neuro-Oncology Conference at the EDSA Shangrila Hotel. Annoyed by the foreign speakers (which they exalted their Filipino apprentices as well, nonetheless) bragging about anything they can think of just to "sell" their "expertise" to the audience (5 years of good prognosis for Glioblastoma Multiforme? DUH!!! ) Not to mention that the whole conference appeared like a major advertisement of one of the prominent non-stock/non-profit hospitals in the Philippines! I wonder if Luke, one of Christ's disciples, would feel if he's alive right now?!?

Bored to death on that fact, add to that the cool ambiance and the cozy smell of newly brewed coffee, I was starting to close my eyes and to doze off. Good thing I brought with me my 16Gb iPod Touch! Checked for a Wi-fi connection, I was amazed to have at least more than 5 open and free internet connections! Welcome to the Philippines! Please visit us for free wi-fi Internet!

With the Touch's

• 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display
• 480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 pixels per inch

and

• Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
• Maps location based service

I browsed the net on my way out of dreamland! Even checked-out emails and watched YouTube videos on-the-fly. Posted bids and haggled discounts on buy-now merchandise. More powerful than any Windows Mobile device I've ever had. Started on iPaq's way back year 2000, I'm a Microsoft solid fan by the way. I'm a member of PinoyWindowsMobile and many other Microsoft Philippine sites out there including Windows Smartphone devices like modaco.com and airfagev.com to name a few. I've learned to write xml and html on the way. A couple of PDA's and Smartphones later, despite my hesitation, I took my chance on a Mac! Just because of that very impressive multi-touch screen Apple has to boast and 16Gb of storage.

So here I am. Jailbroken my iPod in the past 3 months, installed a couple of free apps, by the way there's a gazillion free apps out there. I've yet to encounter a paid app as I have not in anyway. I've learned to maximize my new found gadget to its full potential.

Perfect as it would have been, I tried to post or edit my blog but I can't. I clicked away like hell on a link but nothing happens. Since Mother's day is fast approaching, I wanted to send my mom and wife an e-card. But to no avail! I guess Safari on the iPod Touch/iPhone is just new. It needed a little maturity for it to be a full-pledged internet browser. It don't even support Flash!

As we walked out of the conference room, wifi signal began to drop dramatically. But thanks to its iPod soul, I was able to entertain myself with my 3Gb worth of music, 4Gb of videos, and a couple of games. I had more than half of its storage capacity left to keep me occupied for a couple of hours.

With its slim and streamlined body, who could ever thought this thing could pack such a powerful processing power and a large storage capacity. Even faster and larger in storage than my workstation at my office of Pentium III 500Mhz with 10Gb hard disk.

Pros: large, high-pixel, multi-touch screen (i use it for personal web browsing more than my computers)
fast processor, 16Gb storage
built-in wifi
lots of free web-based and native applications
small form factor (handheld)

Cons: short battery-life (lasts me up to 2 days only with heavy usage)
no provision for storage expansion,

For detailed specifications, click here.

My experience with the Motorola V6 Maxx

When I moved-in to my new abode, I knew I will be needing some sort of connection to the Internet. What's a techie geek/addict without Internet after all? All that hype about HSDPA or High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (to the layman, high-speed mobile internet or 3.5G as you may), convinced me to choose this type of connection as it will be convenient for me. I move around a lot tagging along my trusty old laptop. And Smart Communication's low price of 10 pesos per 30 mins (around 25 cents US), it seemed the perfect high-speed solution.

A couple of hours looking for the perfect HSDPA cellphone, I came across the Motorola V6 Maxx. With an ad that goes...

"It's hard to define, but you know the moment it enters a room. Your eyes are drawn to it and your ears wait for every sound. It's called presence. And it's built right into the MOTORAZR maxx V6. Experience its sculpted style, touch-sensitive controls and advanced music technology."

...who would resist not even trying-out this new phone from Motorola?

After buying and started using it, I just learned that my cellphone network I am subscribed to doesn't support HSDPA despite their rampant advertisements about the nationwide service! What the hell? Now I'm stuck with it connecting to the slower 3G standard, but still quite sufficient for casual browsing and light downloading.

Pros: sleek & ultra slim design (mix of metal and glass!)
bright & large screen
2.0 megapixel camera with flash
elegant lighting
futuristic touch-sensitive music keys
support for high-speed internet (HSDPA)

Cons: sluggish touch buttons
non-T9 standard predictive text

For full specifications, click here.

Finding the right Internet Connection

Here at my unit, I don't have much to choosing an internet connection. Been using my computer/laptop connected to my cellphone via cable or bluetooth on Smart's 10 peso per 30 minutes offering for the longest time. It seemed a very cost-effective solution for me. Many times recently there are glitches on their system. It says I don't have credits and I have to buy more for me to connect. What the **** is this? I'm on post-paid, I don't buy credits, or prepaid cards for anyone's sakes and never have I exceeded my limits be it on call or texts. One solution was to reboot my computer or restart my cellphone just to get through. Then it will. That's when I started to look for alternatives..

I've been contemplating on getting SmartBRO wireless internet service since that is what my siblings in my parent's house are using (the most popular in the Philippines anyway), which I've tried there a couple of times and found no issue whatsoever. They are happy with it. It even a little exceed the subscribed speed of 384kbps whenever I test it! But due to a number of unsatisfied customers over some forums and some mainly residing in my area, I opted to turn them down. Whenever I look outside my windows, I see rooftops cladded in SmartBRO's antennas as if every house in my neighborhood seemed like remote-controlled cars in a rather inanimate lowbat kind of way. My location is obviously over-"SmartBRO-ed"

Browsing the net for alternatives, I happen to remember I am a "legit" Skycable subscriber, the premiere cable TV provider in the Philippines. I needed to emphasize "legit" as you know there are a number of "criminals" out there just stealing their way to free cable TV. I remembered also that they were offering broadband internet services to selected areas as well. It is then I started to browse their website. Then looked for reviews regarding their services. Then I decided to give them a call.

One call is there to it. The customer service representative even wanted my internet connection done the very same day. But I was away so I just made an appointment to 2 days later. Just as scheduled, I woke up to the buzz that the Sky's technicians made to my doorbell. Installed the modem, tested the connection, and they're off. Took less than 10 minutes!

I'm hooked-up to Skycable's ZPDee Broadband Cable Internet for over a week now and I can say two (wish I had more) thumbs-up! At 512kbps plan, I keep getting a little higher throughputs than what I have subscribed! (no illegal stuff like uncapping or anything).

Just a satisfied customer. Period.

My First Blog!

Finally I have made my first blog. Hopefully, this site will transform most of the ideas, comments, reviews, and rants regarding techie gadgets and computer thingies. I am especially enthused by electronics and anything that goes with it.

I welcome any comments you feel relevant and thank you for visiting!