André’s Weblog

Well, if you haven’t noticed, which I highly doubt , I’ve updated the overall look and feel of my blog. I like to think of this as my Christmas Season edition. Lol. Lame. I’m pretty happy with it. I hope you are too. My blog is now optimized for high-resolution displays. Those stuck in 800×600 and 1024×768 diplays might have a little trouble viewing my blog in all it’s glory. You’re going to have to scroll around a lot. Been getting a lot of site traffic lately. People are actually reading my blog! Woohoo! Now, down to business.

I’m pretty sure that a lot of people here in the Metro are already on broadband. I define broadband as an internet connection speed of at least 384Kbps. It’s more than enough if all you do is email, chat, and download digital photos. There has been an upsurge in the broadband service industry. Before, it was only Zpdee who provided high-speed internet access. Now, we have PLDT myDSL, Globe Broadband, Sky DSL, Eastern DSL, to name a few. I haven’t tried all of them, other than PLDT myDSL because I’m currently subscribed to it. All of our local broadband service providers have similar shortcomings.

• They have weak customer support, although PLDT is slowly improving
• The speeds they advertise are area dependent, which means that on some areas, it’s fast, while others are slow

I was thinking of switching to Globe because of their competitive pricing, but I still have to check with them if they can provide me broadband in my area, since their coverage is very limited in the Metro. For now, I should be contented with the 1.2Mbps connection from PLDT, even though I am supposed to get 2Mbps, or at least somewhere near that speed.

If you compare our broadband speeds to those in Japan, USA, and Singapore, you’d feel as if our internet is so damn slow. For example, Japan’s fastest home broadband access is rated at 50Mbps, that’s right, 50! Translated into human language, that mean’s that you don’t have to wait for a high-quality mp3 to download. You can also watch an HD movie trailer instantaneously and you only have to wait 2 min. to download a full length film in DVD quality. That is how technologically advanced their communications infrastructure is. People in the USA are also enjoying ultra high-speed broadband, thanks to Verizon. Singtel also has a 10Mbps offering. Wow. You can only imagine what this kind of power will allow us to do.

I wish we had these kinds of internet connections available here for home users. At least, in Southeast Asia, the Philippines is the wireless service leader. We beat Singapore to introduce HSDPA, thanks to Globe! The only real use I see from 3G/3.5G is the ability to download wirelessly faster. I don’t even see video calling as a nice feature, unless they improve it and eliminate its shortcomings (especially the camera that makes your face incredibly fat!). Globe also introduced the newest wireless broadband package, Globe Visibility! Think of it as the ultimate wireless download plan available. You only have to pay a flat rate of Php 2,000.00 for you to be able to use Globe’s wireless network to connect to the internet. This is probably the mobile warrior’s best secondary weapon, next to his laptop of course. The drawback? If you are not in Globe’s HSDPA network area coverage, you are stuck with GPRS, which is the wireless equivalent of dial-up!!! Imagine, you pay 2 grand for dial-up speed!?! Lol. The good thing is, Globe is expanding their network coverage quite fast. Give it a year, and you might surf at broadband speeds, anywhere you may be.

So, there is a look into our country’s broadband industry. Is it growing? YES. Is it the right time to get broadband-connected? YES. Will the prices come down? In my opinion, it will. Service providers already know that there is an untapped market for high-speed internet access. They can exercise monopoly, since the consumers all want the same thing.

Now, tell me, do you still think your broadband connection fast?

I’ve been thinking of getting a new phone for Christmas and I thought to myself, “What would satisfy my unquenchable thirst for the latest and greatest technology?”

I have been lusting at the Sony Ericsson P990i for quite some time now. However, I am slowly steering away that path. It has come to my attention that the OS of the P990i is very unstable and slow. I have seen videos of the phone being used over there at YouTube. I must admit, while the device looks really slick, the menu speed is not as responsive as I had hoped. The battery life also did not impress me. The reason why I liked it so much is because I wanted to converge a PDA and a mobile phone in one device. Sometimes, I get tired charging the batteries of two different devices (MotoRAZR V3 and Palm Tungsten E2) at different times. I would often forget to charge the other when both devices are in desperate need of power. The P990i had all the features that I wanted and needed. However, the unstable OS of the phone compromised the what could have been God of all phones. Thanks but No Thanks SE.

Of course, the Nokia phones crossed my mind for a bit. I will admit that some of them have nice features, but I still feel that they are not the way to go. What turns me off is their incredibly manipulative marketing strategy. In the Philippines, a considerable percentage of the people who use Nokia phones are extremely illiterate to the potential, as well as the shortcomings, of their phones. While I appluad the team behind their marketing strategy, I find a lot it to be superficial. Take for instance, the Nokia N93. It is advertised with the catch phrase “The next story in video“. How can a device with extremely inferior technical capabilities match a full-blown DV camera when recording video in DVD quality? It’s not bad to stretch the truth, as long as they keep it in perspective. FYI, the video looks good because of the phone’s screen. Mobile phone screens are usually LCD screens/TFT active matrix. They are designed to remove some pixelation on everything that is displayed. No amount of Carl Zeiss lenses will change that. Nokia fanboys would probably hate me. It’s the truth, whether you accept it or not.

Lol. I did not intend to write an essay on mobile phones. I guess I am not yet ready for smartphones. Before I buy a smartphone, it has to have:

• Rock solid OS (Operating System)
• The latest and greatest technology
• Wireless internet access
• Broad software developer support
• EXTREME BATTERY LIFE

For now, the Casino Royale phone caught my attention. The uber geeky and incredibly slick Limited Edition K800i!

Christmas is getting nearer and nearer! Once again, it’s the time to give and receive. I already have an idea what I’m going to get my parents, but I wonder if they have any idea on what I want from them. I myself am confused on what I want. There are so many good stuff out there today! So, I decided to come up with a list of material objects that caught my attention in the past few weeks. Here goes!

1. Sony Ericsson P990i

I really like this phone. This appeals so much to me. I hate the fact that I have to carry 2 different devices in my 2 pockets. The P990i converges both of them. It also has all the features I want. Sure, the built-in 802.11b radio will help me (in human language, that means Wi-Fi), but the 3G capabilities are what caught my attention. The video calling function is just ok. What I like about 3G connections is the ability to hook it up to a computer (desktop or laptop) and act as a modem, which will allow me to surf the internet @ speeds up to 384Kbps, even without a wi-fi hotspot nearby! Also, this is a geek toy.

2. Omega Seamaster 300 M Chronometer

If this watch looks familiar to you, chances are, you have seen the latest James Bond film, Casino Royale. Yep! This is the watch Daniel Craig was using in the movie. The any Omega watch that any Bond will use won’t be manufactured by the hundred thousands. They will only make 10,007 units of each, effectively making it a rare watch. It has an automatic movement (duh. You don’t expect them to make this fine piece of watch a quartz now do you?). Owning one of these babies would make me one of England’s most powerful weapons.

3. Nikon D40 D-SLR

This one caught my attention because our family pictures should be sharp, vibrant, and crisp. This is a great way to preserve memories, especially if we are to burn pictures as a slideshow on DVD.

Well, I just hope my parents read my blog often.