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Comments
Now that AT&T is acquiring T-Mo, I wonder if selection will improve?
They keep hyping the new Bold 9900 model, which will be 4G and have a touchscreen, but it's a measly 2.8". iPhone is 3.7" and some have gone as big as 4.3".
Even this long-time BBerry guy is ready to jump ship - if only work would allow us to.
Bob
-Brian
Spring forward more than a year and a half. I'm up for an upgrade from Verizon Wireless. Which phone? The Storm 3 is supposedly re-labelled the Torch 2 - same big screen and virtual keyboard. OS 7 and whispers of compatability issues. The big drawback? Nowhere as many apps as Android and IPhone. And, do I really want/need a 4G device? Will I be sorry if I don't do it? Also, Verizon now has the IPhone ... I do like my toys ... decisions, decisions, decisions ...
This summer, I have spent countless hours and thousands of miles behind the wheel of the Outback - the vehicle purchased mostly for running errands around town and the occasional long trip. The Outback has certainly proven itself as a formidable commuter vehicle, especially over some of the positively worst road conditions imaginable. The road construction in and out of Boston seems to be never-ending, with rough pavement, bridge replacements, constant lane reconfigurations, incredible amounts of traffic, driving at high speeds, and totally insane drivers. While I love the pure, raw power of my Legacy GT, the couple trips with the low profile tires and stiff suspension made for a very uncomfortable ride, especially where I am used to cruising the smooth, open highways of NH. And I got very good gas mileage with the Outback - somewhere between 28 to 30, compared to 22 tops on the GT which requires premium gas.
One incredible experience I had ... tunes cranked and flying out of the Big Dig tunnel and over the Zakim Bridge past the TD Boston Garden just after sunset ... the lights and Boston skyline are breathtaking!
Glad Mikey is okay on the other side of the ordeal.
Interesting to read all the autism spectrum disorder discussion. As I have mentioned before, our youngest (by 2 minutes ;-) son Trevor has had issues for a while. He clearly has some primary elements of the disorder but there has been a split amongst the people involved as to his diagnosis. The paediatrician says no but the psychologist said yes. I am a supporter of the theories that this isn't a Y/N diagnosis, but rather a spectrum, so it doesn't matter to me as much. Sandra has been a "Don't Label My Child" devotee, but I sometimes wonder if the alternative might make more available to him within the school system. There is no doubt as to the superimposed ADD and everyone agrees with the DCD and processing disorder. He has some supports made available to through the school system including a computer because he still can't write legibly, but we repeatedly encounter teachers who didn't bother to read his teaching plan and recommendations. One day last year, a substitute started to openly castigate him for "playing on a computer" while she was teaching. It was the other kids in the class who spoke up and told her that he used one for school. I remember feeling both crushed and furious at the same time when his brothers told me, but when I spoke to him, it was an immense relief that it simply didn't register emotionally in his world. It was worse 2 years ago early in the year when we were called for a meeting with his full time teacher to discuss issues about his "attitude and work habits". The teacher and TA complained about what are basically the diagnostic criteria for what he has and which are fully discussed in his assessment document which they had been given.
In the end, it really does rest with us as parents. If you haven't already, get a copy of "Be Different". It is a great book by the author of 'Look me in the eye' who has Asperger's, but much more helpful to parents and individuals. I am definately a supporter of the view that being different doesn't mean defective and that we should find ways for everyone to make their way in the world without holding them to our narrow views of behaviour.
Nicholas
Sometimes the students do have more available if they have a "label". As an educator, I hate the labels for all students and wish we could just take kids where they are and move them forward .... oh well ...
The price drop has something to do with the forthcoming iPhone 5 which will probably drop next month.
Juice - search ebay for an unlocked iPhone and slip your T-Mobile sim card in.
RIM - IMHO, I think they'll be gone within a couple of years. The real growth in smartphones is on the consumer side. Their expertise is on the commercial side and plenty of other options are starting to encroach onto that business. The conspirisist in me would like to see Apple buy RIM and offer devices/service that would offer the ease and flexibility of Apple with the security and reliability of RIM.
My wife has a BB Bold IIRC and she has pretty much hated it from day one. Her contract is up and I'm trying to get her over to the iPhone 5. She was amazed this past weekend when we were pairing up our phones with our new Explorer with My Ford Touch. My iPhone was connected in about 30 seconds. Her BB took over 2 minutes. She was a little miffed though when the music streaming over Bluetooth from my phone dropped out when I walked away from the vehicle.
My brother in North Carolina sent me his "old" second-gen iPod Touch last month because he had picked up an iPhone and didn't use it any longer. It is a cute little toy, and can definitely be addictive, but I am still happy to be cellphone free. I am just afraid that even having this trinket draws me too far in that direction.
I've thought about it, but remember, I'm in tech support, so I have to use what my users have, to support it.
The conspirisist in me would like to see Apple buy RIM and offer devices/service that would offer the ease and flexibility of Apple with the security and reliability of RIM.
Oh heck yeah! That would be sweet
T-Mo is finally getting the Bold 9900, but still just a 2.8" touch screen, and I've been waiting for years! Frustrating. It's like they want to fail.
Same with tablets.
Playbook was rumored to come out in 7" and 10" models, yet only 7" is offered. At launch it lacks Video Chat (fixed) and built-in e-mail. It's HD and does flash but the screen is so small, who cares?
You pull up the keyboard and there is less than 2" of height above it for text. You need reading glasses, basically.
Now they're trying to get Adroid apps to work on the Playbook tablet, and that will at least address the lack of App selection.
The 10" model was cancelled, though, and a 12" model is rumored for next year. HUH? 2012? You're kidding, right? By then the iPad 7 will be out and it will offer tele-portation and shoot laser beams to eliminate your dog's poop.
RIM is 3 years behind and determined to stay there.
Well you could always get a personal iPhone. Oh I forgot, Lincoln, Jefferson and Franklin are allergic to sunlight!! :P
I heard something about the Playbook lacking e-mail. Didn't they bother to do some research!!
Problem: US domestic iPhones can only do 1.5G speed on TMo's network. They have AT&T radios in them and don't have the right frequency to do 3G (or 4G/hspa+) on TMo.
I have read rumors that the iPhone5 will have full TMo frequency support, however. This is probably due to AT&T attempting to buy TMo.
The bridge is actually clever - it uses your existing connection, so you don't pay another monthly fee, yet you have e-mail and the Bridge Browser anywhere. We tested it in a moving car, and it worked. All with an already paid work phone (unlimited plan).
Yes, I am cheap. When people ask what I want to pay, the answer is always zero, nothing.
Still, the bridge browser is slow with a 3G Bold 9780. I will try again when I get the Bold 9900 because that is 4G and should offer a faster connection.
So basically they targeted Blackberry users. Hey guys, not every iPad buyer is an iPhone owner...
I bought my wife an iPhone last year even though she didn't want it- now you can't take it from her! And she's a technophobe!
If only the iPhone worked well as a phone. . . it would be perfect!
tom
Bob
I have a basic Motorola flip phone on a pay as you go plan strictly for emergencies.
To give you an idea of how much I use it, I pay ten bucks a month and I have over a hundred dollars in credits.
On the other hand I am a car nut and I love toys in the car, just not phones.
Cheers Pat.
Personally, I'd rather have a small phone and a big-enough tablet like the Playbook for trudging around all the time, but as I have said many times before, marketing for my preferences is usually a path to business failure.
Good point, and Playbook will only really appeal to BlackBerry users, though there is a large installed base of those.
They did some things well but you can tell it's a v1.0. Hopefully the 12" model coming next year nails it.
You'd be proud of me, Pat.
Hooked up a Magellan backup camera last night. I tapped in to the backup light wiring, mounted it to the license plate. It has a wireless sender, just had to make a hole in the sheet metal (behind some trim) to pass the wires through, and home-make a grommet to seal it up.
Worked like a charm, on the first try!
Magellan provides a wireless receiver. I mounted it to the back of my RoadMate 9050 GPS, so you barely see any wires. The power I tucked behind some dash trim, so it basically stands alone at the top of the dash, no wires protruding.
7" GPS screen, backup camera and all, for ~$400 or so. OEM Navi/backup cam would have been $2200.
They added Video Chat shortly after launch, but yeah, you pretty much can only talk to other PlayBook users. Both of them.
I hate that Apple and RIM are segmenting this market, rather than adapting to Skype, since everyone already has a Skype ID. Do we really need a Skype ID, and a Face Time account, and a Video Chat account? 3 passwords for the same thing?
If he has an IEP, make sure he gets all the accommodations due him; it is Federal law, but mostly because you don't want him shortchanged in the educational environment.
Serge
http://driveperformance.subaru.com/dp82_reverse.aspx?page=3#lil
Cheers Pat.
Sounds like you are in for an interesting ride. From the perspective of having a now fifteen year old with Asperger's Syndrome, we now understand how important it is to get a name for a kid's condition. Lots of documentation also helps (I think we have about 2" of various specialists reports for Angus). The reason for that is not just for today but planning for the sort of support the kid will need in late secondary school where things like ability to write quickly in exams are a problem.
For a long time, we were wary of putting a name to Angus's condition (Don't label my child) but realised that in order to get funding for various things and explain the differences, you need to be able to attach an easy description to it.
Nicholas, drop me an email off forum and I will offer some hints
Cheers
Graham
Bob
lots of stairs, lots of steps, lots of paper, beyond tired ...
Can you tell it was the 1st day of school?
Bob
Seriously, though, it does seem early to me, too. School starts tomorrow here, but I thought it was so early here simply because we're in the Great White North. School is over in the middle of May, which is just about the time the weather starts to get nice again!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4EWHtFe50Y
2007 Toyota Sienna LE
Magellan RoadMate 9055-LM
Magellan Wireless Backup Cam
7" nav screen with backup cam function installed myself, total cost about $400. OEM Nav cost was $2200 on this model! And I got lifetime map updates included, plus the GPS has integrated traffic, bluetooth, text-to-speech, etc. It's the flagship GPS for Magellan right now.
Follow-up video demo of the custom bracket mount I made myself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcLtA5S3QeU
For the record, I could have done that same backup routine without the camera and been closer to the second cup. But, the point is well made that you can see *everything* immediately behind your van while doing it.
That would be no different even without the medical emergency having taken up so much time!
You have superhero see-through vision?
Watch the 2nd video, you basically back up completely blind in that van. I showed that you can't even see the trash can - at all. It's nearly 4' tall!
Now imagine a toddler - no chance to see them unless you get out of the minivan. And I had the 3rd row folded. The 3rd row seat block the view even more. I think you see the ground, oh, about 3 miles behind you.
Bob
Pretty much the same here. School starts Sept 7 - we usually start before Labor Day. My son who will be a freshman is at band camp all this week and half of next week. Cross country starts Thursday next week. Freshman orientation is Tuesday and he has to pick up his school issued iPad sometime next week.
My daugher who is going into middle school is just lying around.
Uh-oh, we all know what happens there...
American Pie reference.
In reality it's lots of marching around a pseudo football field trying not to trip over their feet!!
But hey, I did concede that your point was made in that the camera does an excellent job at letting you see what is back there! And, with having the bumper in the view, it allows you to easily reference the distance of the object from the back of the vehicle. That isn't important for someone who is familiar with the vehicle (assuming they have any memory imprint at all of the vehicle), but with that set up anyone could hop in and easily, accurately back it up to within fractions of an inch of an object.
I have it aimed all the way down, you could really line up a trailer nicely, if I had a tow hitch that is. Still thinking about that, but I don't like that I'd have to cut the bumper even for the OE hitch.
Oh, wait... that's the wife's car. Would she let you borrow it?