23 November 2011

Last week my wife lost her iPhone 3G in a little accident at home. Actually it was more of a tragedy and it involves Mia Ariana and a full bladder. Anyway as any regular iPhone users should know, after using the best damn phone in the world for some time, they would exhibit withdrawal symptoms after losing it. That includes lack of sleep, loss of productivity (Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja) and that empty feeling deep down inside. So my wife rather than suffer through all 5 stages of agony, decided to do the wise thing and bought another iPhone (after much prodding and moral support from her husband).

That brings us to this beautiful new, reconditioned iPhoned 3GS phone you see above. Since iPhone 4 is still too expensive for our budget, we had to settle for the next best thing. In Low Yat Plaza there are two types of iPhone 3GS'. Second hand or a reconditioned (recon) unit. There's no such thing as a new iPhone 3GS in the market right now. If they say it's new, it's probably a recon unit. A recon (new) iPhone 3GS phone at Low Yat is only around 1K while a second hand iPhone 4 is about RM1.6K but they're still hard to come by.

To me, this old and underpowered iPhone 3GS still beats the most of the best or newest Android smartphones out there. Although those droids easily outshine the 3GS in hardware specifications, software-wise they're still light years behind. iOS 5, iTunes integration and hundred of thousands quality apps on and off the App Store. Can Android copy that? I don't think so. During my short-lived experiment with Android, I had a tough time finding any decent app for my phone. And even they come from the same publisher, somehow the Android app will look much uglier than their iOS counterpart. And have you tried to root (jailbreak) an Android? I did. About a dozen times actually but failed every time. I consider myself technologically advanced and yet I couldn't liberate my Android even by following all the instructions online to the letter.

Then there's the case of Android fragmentation. Sure there are literally hundreds of Androids to chose from to suit any budget. However some of the cheaper Android phones are so crappy, you better of buying a generic Nokia dumbphone with Symbian. The screen is to small, virtual keyboard is impossible to press and the onboard RAM is a joke. Plus the OS update takes forever to come. Although Google has released the latest version ages ago, they will mean nothing if your phone's manufacturer keep dragging their feet on releasing their on version. You just can't connect to iTunes and download the latest update every 2 months like the iPhone.

Next is lack of iTunes or a central repository for software and multimedia organisation. Sure you can easily transfer movies and download apps for the Android but once you had to do a complete restore, the result would be messy. Unless you have a 3rd party backup app (like Titanium backup) installed, getting your Android phone back to normal would be a pain in the ass. With the iPhone you just plug and sync everytime. Now you can even do it wirelessly with iOS5. I can go on and on about the advantages of iPhones over Android but the bottomline is, Android sucks. So does Windows Phone and Blackberries. End of story.

So if you're planning to get a smartphone soon, there's only one brand of phone to consider. You know what it is. Yes they're still expensive but it's a long term investment which you won't regret.

11 October 2011

After using Android for 2 months I have come to the conclusion that the OS sucks. Maybe it's just my crappy HTC Wildfire, maybe it's standard with all Android phones but I just can't see myself using the OS anymore.


First there's the space issue. Although you can always add an external SD card, up to 32GB in fact, the truth is many apps requires installation on the phone only. Which sucks, big time. Why? Because most Android phones has anything from 512MB to 2GB of internal storage only so naturally they will ran out of space in like 2 days. Imagine if you have 512MB of ROM with the HTC Wildfire for example. 128MB from it is reserved for system files. So the balance, only the measly 384MB is available to install all your favorite apps. No matter if you have 16GB or 64GB memory card. Many Android apps is phone only, meaning you can't run them from the external memory card.


And then there's the jailbreak factor. The entire 2 months of using my Android, I tried like a dozen times to root the phone but to no avail. I think I combed the web pretty thoroughly, following all the instructions to the letter. But nope, in the end always fail. Compared to the iPhone, it took me less than 5 minutes to jailbreak that thing (ipsw file download time not included). What's up with that? And I thought Androids were suppose to be open. Let's not even talk about the apps. Sure many of them are free but most of them are shitty as well. Something that you don't want to install even when they're free. And the interface and design of those Android apps looks like shit compared to iOS. Aesthetically, they don't even come close.


So in the end I threw caution to the wind and bought myself an iPhone again. Yes I had to sell my HTC, digital camera, MiFi device and my left kidney to pay for half of it but I think it's totally worth it. And while I'm at it, why not the iPhone 4 I thought. It captures gorgeous pictures so no need for a digital camera anymore. And with my Celcom Mobile Internet plan, I find the old but trusty MiFi device now redundant.


2 weeks later I have not regretted a bit buying the iPhone again. I have basically used every iPhone model out there from the lowly 2G to the iPhone 4 and I dare-say the iPhone is the best phone money can buy.


Besides, I missed the Instagram app so much.

26 August 2011

Earlier this afternoon, I went to Lafarge cement plant in Rawang to meet with some contractors there. I was supposed to discuss this plc diagram with them despite the fact I have no previous experience whatsoever with this thing. Actually this didn't surprise me that much because my new boss had this habit of throwing us new staffs straight into the sea and expect everybody to get the job done. It's up to us to learn how to adapt or in my case bluff my way around the job he he.

Lucky for me this discussion didn't last that long because obviously those guys didn't understand much what I was explaining. In the end they decided to stick with the original drawings and do the modifications themselves. Phew. Imagine there I was with my shirt and pants without any safety helmets or jackets at the cement plant. I was like a fish out of water. Had I known sooner I'd prepared myself better. Anyway I got back to the office around 4:30 PM. At my old office, the boss would have let everybody before 3 o'clock on the last day of work before Raya. I guess this new place didn't have such tradition. So I waited impatiently for the last hour to pass by which felt like eternity.

In the end 5:30 finally came and I went not home but straight to Low Yat Plaza. You see, my iPhone was having this problem with the touchscreen. I was thinking of fixing the screen when suddenly it flashed in my mind, why don't I just trade in this phone for something new? I mean it's been having so many problems, one after another and what guarantee do I have that this phone won't go bonkers again in the future? Furthermore between me and Adam we had dropped the phone like 20 times previously. It's a miracle that the thing is still working right now.

So I didn't give it any much thought and spontaneously swapped my phone for an HTC Wildfire Android phone. Of course the shop had to reduce the trade in price a little bit for the broken screen so I end up paying a hundred ringgit extra for the new phone. Although I have been relentlessly expressing my undying devotion for the iPhone, doesn't mean I would never buy a different phone brand ever. I've always had a soft spot for Google's Android so naturally it became my second choice if I had to choose another one. At the end of the day I went home with a new phone and a big grin on my face.

Yes I am already missing my precious iPhone. Although the Wildfire is newer and shinier, no phone could ever replace the phone that changed everything. Of course I fully expect to revert back to the iPhone some time in the future.

26 April 2011

Yesterday a friend of mine brought a brand new HTC Desire HD phone. It's got Android, huge 4.3" screen and it's superfast too. Before he bought the phone, he's been asking me should he get an iPhone, so I told him definitely. But today, he bought an Android anyway. So I asked him, have you rooted the phone and installed custom ROM and downloaded free apps? He looked totally clueless and asked me to do it for him.

Now I never owned an Android phone or attempted to root (jailbreak term for Android) an Android phone before. But I decided to help him anyway. At least I tried. I Googled around and found several dozen ways to root so many different kinds of Android phones. And most of them is not easy too mind you. For this awesome HTC Desire HD that my friend just bought, I had to download half a dozen files and custom ROMs and follow 2 dozens very complicated steps involving Unix command prompts some more. Furthermore there's a good chance I might brick (damage) the phone permanently and void the warranty. Jailbreaking an Android device is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

Anyway I never succeeded in rooting his phone. It's just too much hassle and risk. Compare that to jailbreaking an iPhone/iPad/iPod, it took me just 5 easy steps and most of them involve clicking next-next-next. So my friend, if you're looking for a a real smartphone, there's simply one and one phone only to choose from. Buy an iPhone and you can jailbreak it easily and you will never have to pay for apps ever again. An Android may be cheaper with many more features but when it comes down to software and user experience the iPhone wins, hands down.

25 November 2010

These are the boring days. I find my time stuck in traffic or waiting for something to be quite unbearable. I used to watch movies or TV series while stuck in traffic or read my RSS feed or surf the web while waiting for my wife shopping. Today I can't do any of that. I just sold my iPhone today.

It was not an easy decision really. I find my iPhone to be an inseparable item in my daily routine. Like I almost can't leave home without it. Then again I think it's time to move on because I'd like to have something better. No, not an iPhone 4, that's way too expensive but I'm saving to buy a magical and revolutionary device next. Yes you guess it right, an iPad. Now I only need to find another 800 ringgit from my dream machine. Boss, you have any 2nd hand iPad you wanna let go?:)

6 September 2009

Last night we had a sleepover at my Mom's place again. She bought a new TV set last week and she finally subscribed to Astro. If you knew my Mom, you'd know that this is a really remarkable occassion. A giant step for mankind kind of thing. Previously she gave me 101 excuses why she doesn't need Astro at home. She's fine with RTM, TV3 and TV9, she doesn't have time to watch all those channels, it's a waste of money, etc-etc. And then suddenly one day we went there and surprise, Astro! What's more she even subscribed to the Sports package so that I can watch football whenever we come there. Aha!

Later this afternoon we went to Mutiara Damansara for a stroll at IKEA. You would have thought that people would stay quietly at home this Puasa and H1N1 season but no, the place is swarming with people. Even the huge 2 level basement parking underneath the place is full. Lucky for us I knew of tips #23 of visiting IKEA/Ikano which basically say you can park just about anywhere when the parking is full.

I picked up a few stuff in my shopping trolley but in the end I only bought one lonely laundry basket to replace the old one which was shredded to bits by Adam Farihin. Besides, the long queue at the checkouts just spoiled my shopping mood (chewah).

Today I finally purchased my first App from Apple's App Store. I've downloaded dozens of apps from the store before but they were all free. This BlogPress app is perfect for serious bloggers looking to blog from the iPhone. Since Blogger didn't bother to make a proper app for the iPhone, I had no choice but to buy this one. That is of course after thinking long and hard about it firstlah. Nevermind that it's only USD2.99 (about RM10.00).

So far I'm quite satisfied with this BlogPress app. I can login to multiple Blogger accounts as well as Wordpress, Live Spaces, Joomla and several other popular blogging platform. I can post directly or save as draft and the most important thing is I can upload pictures directly from my iPhone, something not possible from Safari. In fact I wrote this post entirely from my iPhone. It doesn't have all the full functions and options like the proper web version, but it will do.

-- Posted from my iPhone

13 August 2009

These days, I don't really mind being stuck in a traffic jam or stopping at a prolonged period of time. Why? Because now I can spend those idle time watching movies or TV series on my iPhone which is attached to that cool holder over there.

No more wasting my time cursing at the traffic situation or staring at the cute girl next door. Simply a must have accessories for all iPhone users out there. Also for your convenience, get that handy travel charger to charge your iPhone on the go.