What A Week!

If you're reading this site, then you know that I like to play with the new gadgets and software. Unfortunately, my wallet forbids me from buying the new gear when it comes out, so I have to settle for checking out software.

It's is no secret that Verizon Wireless is possibly the slowest when it comes to updating their phones' software, so if you want to play with the latest dessert treat from Google... you need to install it yourself. So I did. Eventually. You see, initially, I only wanted to update the camera software so I could check out the Photoshere feature in the Android 4.2 update. Unfortunately, when I installed the camera update, it broke. I couldn't open the camera nor the photo gallery.

We Have A New Contender!

Yesterday, in a very Apple-like virtual keynote, the founder of Ubuntu, Mark Shuttleworth, unveiled the plans to bring the popular operating system to the world of smartphones. It is certainly an uphill battle for them against the current crop of Apple and Android offerings... but it does look pretty good.

Just A Thought

Does anyone remember the Lapdock? It was a laptop-like device that did nothing. Well, until you plugged your smartphone into it, and it turned into, basically, a netbook. In theory, it was a neat idea. In reality, it sucked. It sucked so bad that the Lapdock never saw its 2nd birthday. There are a few reasons for it's demise:

Windows 8 First Impressions

Earlier today I spent the better half of 2 hours setting up a brand new laptop with Windows 8. Quick review? I'm not a fan. When it takes 10 minutes to find the setting within the Mail app to add additional accounts... something is wrong. I do understand that Windows 8 is Microsoft is trying to reinvent itself. They are attempting an operating system that will be the same on desktops and tablets, which is a grand idea, but I don't feel as though they pulled it off. Now, this is my opinion, and it may change the more I get to explore Win 8.

A $200 laptop? No way!

First, let me ask you this, would you buy any electronic device today that had a 3.5 hour battery? Of course not! Laptops from 10 years ago had better battery life. Not by much, mind you, but it was better.

So why would Acer put such a shoddy battery into their brand new Acer C7 Chromebook?! Smartphones have better battery life than that. It just doesn't make any sense. I mean, the rest of the machine is actually pretty nice. Chrome OS, 2 GB RAM, 320 GB hard drive (decent for any current laptop), 3 USB 3.0 ports, HDMI port, VGA port, 2-in-1 card reader, with an HD display and HD webcam. Not a bad deal at all for $199. So why skimp on the battery?

I may....

.... have spoke too soon.

This makes me happy. And I'm sure it makes Jenna happy as well because now she knows that I won't be asking for a Chromebook this year.

I may be ready to let you go...

My dear Cr-48. I have given you time to rest. I have given ChromeOS time to mature. But alas, I don't think it will work. I think you have a corrupt hard drive.

In December of 2010, I was ecstatic to learn that I was one of the few that Google had chosen to test out their new ChromeOS on an experimental laptop called the Cr-48. Which I wrote about, here, here, and here. It was a fantastic machine, albeit, there were some small issues. The best part, is that anyone that came over could use it, without fear that they would delete something or mess up my settings. They had their own account with their Google preferences already installed. Very simple. Very convenient. Very cool.

Google's Cr-48 - Part Three

I have now had Google’s Cr-48 netbook for a month, and I feel like I have a broader knowledge to share. So this will be my final installment of my review of the Cr-48. My apologies if I touch back on subjects I’ve already covered.

Google's Cr-48 - Part Two

Our 8 hour drive was pretty uneventful... as far as the Cr-48 and the internet are concerned. I blew through the 100mb of free data during the first few days of having the netbook, so I caved and paid the $9.99 unlimited data day-pass. I’ll admit, I was impressed watching Jenna check in to Facebook and surf the web in ease while I was driving through some small towns in rural southern Georgia. Now, in all fairness, Jenna doesn’t like to be constantly connected like I do, so she didn’t spend much more than an hour or so on the web, but the signal never faltered, which is really saying something considering how far away from civilization we were. No amount of cows or silos blocked the 3G signal. It is now our 2nd morning in South Carolina and the only time the Cr-48 has NOT been connected to the cloud is when I turned it off... which is when we were sleeping.

Google's Cr-48 - Part One

The unboxing was rather uneventful due to the fact that I was at work and had no idea the Cr-48 was even coming. I received a phone call at close to 5 on Wednesday afternoon by my girlfriend asking if I ordered anything because there was a package for me. After a minute or two, the only thing I could think of was..... Google! So I asked Jenna to open it and let me know if the box inside had a hamster on it. Imagine my surprise when she said "Yeah, and a helmet, and a wheel, and a rocket..." 

Holy crap. I REALLY got one.

The next few entries in this blog will be about my experience with the Cr-48, Chrome’s experimental netbook running the Chrome Operating System (Chrome OS). For those that don’t know, Cr-48 is the periodic element for Chromium.
First, I’d like to thank Google for sending me one, especially since they wanted me to tell them why I am unique and why I should be part of the lucky 60,000 test subjects to receive a Cr-48. And what exactly did I tell them? I simply said that “Out of the hundreds of thousands that will be applying for this program.... I am not unique”. But I do know how to play online. So either my name got chosen by mistake, or they really want to test people from all walks of life.

So stay tuned for Part One.

Santa Google, I really hope you visit me!

It’s that time again. When the air gets a little chilly, and people all over the world enter a berserk-like frenzy in trying to go to all the retail stores in town and spend their next 9 paychecks to buy gifts for friends and family. While a very select few will get an early Festivus gift from Santa Google. Even though I signed up for the Pilot Program, sadly, I doubt I will be counted in that lucky few category that will be receiving a CR-48 Netbook from Google, as they are probably sending them to programmers, developers, and tech websites, and I am none of the above. Of well, I can still read all the reviews and watch the videos and learn as much as possible about ChromeOS that is loaded on them. I would tell you what it is, but there are so many better places to learn that from. Engadget.com has the best review I’ve seen on ChromeOS and the CR-48 and you can read that here (it has pictures and video too!). And yes, that’s really all I’ve been reading about for a few days since Google announced it.

Well, the next few weeks will be kinda busy. We are hosting a Christmas dinner for my girlfriends family (20+ people) tomorrow night (help me!), so that should be interesting. Follow that up with one more week of work, with some last-minute hectic berserk-like shopping, and then a beautiful 10 full days away from work with a trip to my dad’s place in South Carolina thrown in. I really need this break too, as the last “vacation” I had was when we bought our house and I took a week off. That wasn’t a vacation. That was working at home. Moving, unpacking, cleaning, driving, lifting, and sleeping somewhere in between. So it’s been close to 2 years since I’ve taken any decent amount of time to recharge my batteries.Yes, I really do need this.

I do apologize for the infrequent posts, but I'm not that great at keeping a schedule. Unless there's food involved. Or video games. Or sleep.