Asked to watch this before taking a training module at work:
Three immediate reactions:
1. It’s all very cool…but
2. The audience members hooting and hollering are a little too excited…
3. And actually physical interaction with the world and with people is far more important than all of this…
I’m becoming increasingly indifferent to technology.
My assignment for myself is to rattle off Nexus 7 pros and cons for the next 5 minutes. Stream-of-consciousness but attempting to keep my consciousness focused on the task at hand and not wandering so much.
I bought a Google/Asus Nexus 7 1G GB tablet a few days ago, and as astonishing as it may seem, I’m considering returning it. This will not pass for a review. This will not pass as opinion from a tech guru. I am so far outside of the realm of what passes for tech knowledge these days. These are just observations from my point-of-view, where I am the user. I am certain my concerns don’t match those of many, since I can’t find them anywhere, in some cases.
Enough of the preface. 5 minutes. Pros/cons. Go…
Pros:
Cons:
Ok…that was 10 minutes. I’m not comparing it to an iPad. I don’t give a darn about iPads. I don’t want an iPad. I have been under the impression that I wouldn’t like using a tablet from a tactile and comfort perspective. That comes from playing around with other tablets, including iPads. I’ve given the Nexus 7 a try because it’s supposed to be the best Android 7″ tablet. If this is the best, I’ll hold off.
I think the larger point is that I’m not a techie. I don’t care enough gadgets to feel like I need to have one of these. I really thought it would be useful. I really thought I’d be wowed by what it can do. I’m just not wowed by technology anymore.
…
I figured I should spend a few minutes using WordPress on the Nexus to see how it feels. It’s uncomfortable in portrait mode. Its uncomfortable in landscape mode. And, again, I’m using an enhanced keyboard. I just can’t see myself wanting to type anything long-form on here. Its not significantly easier to touch type on here versus my outdated phone. Speaking of which…
…
So let me try using my phone for a minute. It’s so much easier to hold the phone between my palms in landscape mode. So much more comfortable for my thumbs even if through keyboard takes up 60 percent of the screen…
Which is easily remedied by sliding out the keyboard. I think I still prefer the slideout out keyboard on my outdated little phone to the tablet touch.
Give me a 6″ tablet with a slideout keyboard. No one makes that. I think I’ll hold out for that.
A 3-year-old would probably have more fun with my Nexus 7 than I am.
.
Got sick of my HTC Hero because I found it very difficult to type on the touchscreen keyboard since the screen is small compared to newer phones. I was constantly choosing the wrong auto-suggest word. More annoying was the need to constantly delete apps, since Android 2.1 does not allow you to save apps to a memory card, and I didn’t want to go through the hassle of rooting the phone.
So I got the HTC Evo Shift. It technically can use a 4G network, but Sprint doesn’t have much of a 4G network here. Still, the web browsing in 3G seems faster. The screen is bit bigger, so it’s easier to type with the touchpad. But I really wanted a slideout keyboard, which comes in handy for typing emails. And I can get as many apps as I want.
That makes four cell phones in four years, I think. Maybe five in five? It’s pathological. Some Samsung non-smartphone to another Samsung non-smartphone to an iPhone 3G to the Hero to the Evo.
Blogging at 3:15 am from my new Android phone, an HTC Hero through CREDO. The iPhone 3G goes to gazelle.com tomorrow. One less customer for the Apple Genius Bar to have to serve on a busy Saturday afternoon.
Shared this with some friends, but it’s worthy of a blog post. Hilarious!
Video is SFW.
Audio is NSFW.
I’ve had a lot more drama with my iPhone in the past week, with the worst occurring today. I don’t feel like documenting it. A consumer warning about an Apple product is pretty useless. I know Apple customer support has a sterling reputation. One blog post from being won’t do squat. The 120 people who waited 1-2 hours for help today at the Southpoint Apple store might have some complaints among them, but most would probably still rate the genius bar specialists as knowledgeable and friendly.
I will give some advice:
Again, without going into details, I’ll summarize my experience with the iconic Apple iPhone 3G.
| iPhone 3G #1 | October 1, 2009 – August 10, 2010 |
| iPhone 3G #2 | August 10, 2010 – August 14, 2010 1:50 pm |
| iPhone 3G #3 | August 14, 2010 1:50 pm – August 14, 2010 3:50 pm |
| iPhone 3G #4 | August 14, 2010 3:50 pm – present |
As mentioned in my work-related post, I walked into a swimming pool with my iPhone. Last Friday, while at North Myrtle Beach (my journals and blogs are not for positive things, so probably no writing about the better moments at Myrtle), I decided to take a quick dip in the pool to cool off after hanging out at the beach. Not used to going to pools in my uneventful life, I didn’t occur to me to empty my pockets. I noticed a minute later that I still had my iPhone in there.
Friday night – blow dryer.
Saturday morning – brief moment on generally-unavailable internet led to purchase of bag of rice
Sunday morning – Apple icon flashed but that’s it; I realized attempts to charge it probably hurt more than helped; bag of rice right away would have been the best course had I known to do that
Monday – Same.
Tuesday morning – Totally dead.
Tuesday afternoon – Suddenly alive! I see my missed calls from the weekend. It syncs with iTunes. I receives incoming texts. Except the touchscreen doesn’t work at all. I can’t unlock it. Can’t do anything with it. I reset it through iTunes. No change. Back into the rice.
Wednesday evening – Pack it with DampRid, which should be more effective than rice, though it’s likely too late.
Apple will charge $199 to replace an iPhone that OOW (out-of-warranty). Can’t pretend it didn’t sustain water damage. There are liquid sensors on the iPhone.
A water-damaged iPhone (3G) can do for $80 or so on eBay. A working 3G can be bought for $160 or so.
A guy on Craigslist says he fixes iPhones for cheap. Not sure exactly how cheap. I’m reluctant to call until I decide my resuscitation efforts have failed.
bullcitydave 