Category: review | Page 4 | Shiny Bits of Life

January 28, 2010January 28, 2010

iPad review

ipad Yes, Apple’s iPad was released yesterday.

I think it will sell a massive amount. Basically, it’s a Kindle, an iPod Touch, and a keyboard-less* MacBook, all rolled into one. It has a much prettier interface than the Kindle. You can do anything that requires the internet when you have a wifi connection – or if you don’t (and spend more), you can do it cellular-ly via AT&T (in some parts of the USA). It sounds like there will be a reasonable deal on that too – $30 for one month’s unlimited data service.

Some of the apps look to be pushed even further than their Mac or iPhone equivalents. And they are reasonably priced ($30 instead of $79 for the full iWork suite).

Prices range from $499 to $829, depending on storage capacity (16-64 gb) and whether you add the 3G internet connection capability. Sounds like a deal to me – for what you get! Availability? “Sign up here, and we’ll contact you when iPad is available to order.” (Could be two weeks. But I’d guess a month-and-a-half.)

For me? I won’t be getting one anytime soon, because I can’t afford it – and because I’m too shy to be that cutting-edge. But if someone gave me one? I’d suck up my pride and settle for being that cutting edge.

(Photo from the Apple site.) *You will be able to get an external keyboard – but it will probably cost something outrageous like $79.

January 25, 2010January 23, 2010

Better parents, not better kids

little-buddy I was amused by this “Little Buddy” device that Best Buy sells. It’s a GPS unit that your child is supposed to carry around so that you will always know where they are.

I can see this being a good thing for children of high profile people, where kidnapping might be a possibility. But normal people? My advice is to communicate with your child. Ideally you have a trusting relationship with them – they tell you where they are and when they expect to return. A pay-as-you-go mobile phone would allow them to communicate with you in a situation where they need to make a new plan. And that would cost less than the $15 a month that the Insignia plan requires (if your agreement with your kid is that you will pay for those kinds of calls or texts only).

Finally, I admit that we are of course not perfect parents. And also, some kids just make bad choices. I don’t think those kind of kids would readily carry around a “Little Buddy” in their pocket or backpack. Chances are, they’d leave it at their friends house before they went off wherever it was they wanted to go.

January 21, 2010January 18, 2010

When you MUST have an accent

In our desire to provide suitable entertainment for our fathers or family, we watched Pendragon.

It was pretty much a C-grade movie. The acting was OK, in some instances. None of us thought the heroine was beautiful enough. But the thing that killed it for us was the American accents. Somehow we have been conditioned to expect that any historical film reflecting that era should have actors and actresses with English (British) accents.

(Image courtesy of the film production company’s site.)

January 4, 2010January 3, 2010

Avatar review

Avatar was indeed a 5-star movie. It had a romance, a plot, incredible special effects – and believability, in a science-fiction sort of way.

I thought it is worth seeing now, as opposed to later via a DVD. The scope of the scenery and the 3D effects were worth the extra expense and hassle of seeing it in a theater.

My favorite part was the texture – rich and deep. James Cameron and his crew lavished massive amounts of attention to detail.

The downside? The battle scenes were too long for my taste. Two hours and 42 minutes cut down to just two hours would have made the movie that much better.

The verdict? Get thee to a theater.

I borrowed the picture came from the film’s website.

December 15, 2009December 12, 2009

Ignite Boulder 7

Ignite Boulder 7 was last Thursday, December 10th. This was the second Ignite Boulder event I went to and the third Ignite. (Denver was my first.)

In short, this one wasn’t as good as it could have been. No bad reflection on Andrew Hyde, the host. He was trying his hardest to keep things on track. But that was an impossible task.

The bad? Expletives were the main meal rather than the spice. And this time, the crowd had a little too much to drink at the pre-party. Many would yell whenever they felt like it – whether their contribution was helpful or not. The yellers must have been used to the Twitter environment, where it is OK to comment on everything. They forgot the basic difference… Twitter allows people the option to listen. At Ignite Boulder 7, there was no option.

The good? Still a great way to experience some new ideas in a fast-moving, live format.