Boostcase Hybrid — a must buy for iPhone 4/4S users

After reading good reviews and buy recommendations about the Boostcase Hybrid from PTB, Abuggedlife, and Technograph, I finally gave it a go and bought one. Indeed, it is capable of doubling my iPhone’s battery life, especially when I’m nowhere near a power outlet, places other than the house or the office.

I’ve been to out-of-town trips where I found my iPhone’s battery dead (or almost dead) before the trip is over. These are the instances that the Boostcase battery pack could have proved very useful.

Don’t get me wrong, I consider the iPhone’s battery to be the most reliable and most consistent compared to say an Android (more on this in another post) and even BlackBerry. I mean I can install any new apps on the iPhone without worrying much about any additional strain on the battery, as compared to when using Android and BlackBerry. Of course, unlimited 3G use especially when using the Maps app can drain a lot of battery. Photos and my own impressions after the jump »

Spinning Beachball of Death on MacBook Pro (Spring 2011)

Since I upgraded my MacBook Pro to Mac OS X Lion, I often encountered the Spinning Beachball of Death, especially when the computer screen wakes up from automatic sleep after some period of time. This happened even either the computer is connected to a power outlet or not. I’ve tried quitting resource hog applications (I don’t use Photoshop, iMovie, Dreamweaver, etc. that much) like Firefox, Google Chrome, and even iTunes, but the spinning beachball just randomly occur — the most frequent would be once a day.

Waiting for the spinning beachball to resolve itself, to eventually disappear and get it back to its working condition is of no help. It’ll stay at that state unless I force shutdown the computer by holding down the power button.

It was already getting on my nerves so I decided to do a little research. Read further »

It’s More Fun in the Philippines Android App

If you were a fan of the new Department of Tourism slogan, “It’s More Fun in the Philippines”, and you own an Android device, then good news for you.

It's More Fun in the Philippines Android App screenshot

You may download the app, “It’s More Fun in the Philippines”, from the Android Market if you want to come up with something like this: Check out my sample photo »

Smart vs. Globe Battle on iPhone 4S

Unbox did actual tests of both networks on two iPhone 4S’s.

Truth is I’m not surprised at all by the results. Smart Communications beat Globe Telecom 8 times to nil. Based on my personal experience, Smart’s 3G network is usually faster as compared to Globe’s, even at the heart of the Ayala Center in Makati, which is supposedly Globe’s home turf. Nevertheless, I just hope Smart could/had broaden its 3G wireless network coverage to include my hometown, in Tigbauan, Iloilo, as I’ll be spending my time there during the coming holidays.

The Android UI Lag

Even for a dual-core 1.2GHz device like the Samsung Galaxy S II (SGS2), while running on Android 2.3 Gingerbread, I could still really tell the UI lag when scrolling, especially when compared to a single-core device like the iPhone 4.

Take for example the official Twitter app. While swiping your fingers from bottom to top to scroll through earlier tweets in your timeline, sometimes the scrolling would stop at the tweet you last put your fingers to, as if you were trying to select or tap on that particular tweet and not swipe through it. This happened so often it actually got so frustrating.

Andrew Munn has a very good explanation why this is so with any Android device: Read the explanation after the jump »

Instapaper for Android

After more than a month tinkering with my Android device, the Samsung Galaxy S II (SGS2), I’ve come to the conclusion that the one app I missed the most about my iPhone is Instapaper.

From the mail app, Evernote, Twitter (Tweetbot), Facebook, to Feeddler (Google Reader) apps, you can easily send articles to read later (and even offline) via Instapaper. Alternatives like ReadItLater are great, but seamless integration with various other apps are wanting, and some articles, although obviously blog posts themselves, are not loading properly in ReadItLater.

To a lot of people, owning a smartphone means a lot of games. I consider myself to not belong to that “lot of people”. The only games I have on my smartphones are those that are really quick games like, the usual suspects like Fruit Ninja, Fling, MasterCode, Flight Control, and some card games like Poker, to pass the time away while waiting for something or someone like in waiting areas of airports, clinics, offices, restaurants and meetings. Read Further »

Samsung pokes fun at iPhone fanboys

Samsung’s Galaxy S II ad: the next big thing is already here:

Jayvee posted:

This ad is spot on. It’s exactly the reaction I get from people who see the Galaxy S II. As I said in previous posts, the S II is the only phone that turns the heads of the fanboys.

I say, yes, this thing may have really got my head turned when I saw one at gadget stores. But having the first hand experience for exactly one month now, I must say I was a bit disappointed. Details about the experience to follow soon. Continue reading Samsung pokes fun at iPhone fanboys

Deception

The life of an accountant[1. In this context, we will refer to all accountants in different fields/practices as accountants, including general accountants, auditors, tax practitioners, finance, etc. ] is boring. Let me tell you why:

We have seen blockbuster movies telling stories about the lives of lawyers, doctors, military and police personnel, sales people, and even stock brokers. But how many movies have you seen that feature the main character playing the role of an accountant?

Not too many, right? That is, if you can remember one at all. The life of an accountant is so dull that scriptwriters can hardly think of an interesting storyline about it.

However, in the 2008 movie, “Deception“, starring Ewan McGregor (as Jonathan McQuarry), Hugh Jackman (as Wyatt Bose), and Michelle Williams (as S):

An accountant is introduced to a mysterious sex club known as The List by his lawyer friend. But in this new world, he soon becomes the prime suspect in a woman’s disappearance and a multi-million dollar heist.

Source: IMDB

Ewan McGregor played the role of an Audit Manager for a fictional accounting firm “Worth & Berman”. Yet, the movie paints a typical accountant/auditor as living a boring life, working late most of the times, zero social life, and a monotonous home-work-home routine. I believe the movie even portrays accounting as not-so-lucrative profession. Continue Reading »

Why I Find Globe PowerSurf for Postpaid Subscribers a Fraud?

I have complained about how Globe’s PowerSurf for postpaid subscribers was so unrealiable. But that was even before my complete billing cycle was over. Now let me post a follow up on that experience.

First, let me describe the timeline of events during the time I was subscribed to PowerSurf99:

  • September 27, 2011 — subscribed to PowerSurf99;
  • October 12, 2011 — my billing cut-off for October 2011;
  • October 27, 2011 — PowerSurf99 auto-renewed in accordance with its terms;
  • November 12, 2011 — my billing cut-off for November 2011;

I’ve monitored my data usage using an iPhone app as well as the iPhone’s built-in settings and noted that I’ve consumed the 50MB allocation on October 13 for the September 27 subscription, and as early as November 5 for the October 27 subscription. Yet up until now, I haven’t received any text from Globe informing that I’ve reached my quota. Moreover, I’ve constantly inquired with 8888 about the status of my subscription and it responded with an explicit message that my subscription is still active. Continue reading Why I Find Globe PowerSurf for Postpaid Subscribers a Fraud?

Screen Capture for Android

I have owned an iPhone 4 and probably have gained an in-depth understanding of the iOS system, and its capabilities and limitations. That was easy to do in the first place — to be familiar with the operating system without the need of a detailed manual.

As a disclaimer: I loved my iPhone 4.

Recently, I was provided with Samsung Galaxy S II as a business/office phone. And I got to play with the Android mobile operating system extensively.

And I found out, as advanced Android may be as an OS, it still lack a basic feature like a native capturing screenshots of your screen. Looking through the Android market, you’ll see apps that can only do screen captures if you root your device. If you ever encounter one that needs no rooting, you’ll find bad reviews about it that render it as close to being fake. I mean — there are fake apps in the Android market?

Oh, and there’s another way to do screen capture without rooting — but with the help of a desktop computer. You’ll find the tutorial at Android Central, or otherwise check out this Youtube video.

In my iPhone 4, screen capture is as easy as pressing the sleep and home buttons simultaneously. You don’t need apps for that.