• Reasonable speed. Dual core i5-2430M processor.
• Large display in a small body. 14″ 300-nit display in a 13.3″ laptop body.
• Light. 4.3 pounds which is about 1.95kg. Easy enough to carry all day, especially in a backpack.
• Large and fast storage. 1 TB hard drive with the 8GB ExpressCache technology that speeds things up in terms of starting up Windows and other programs.
• Backlit Keyboard!!! I wonder why it’s so hard to find laptops with backlighting? It’s sooooo useful.
• Outputs are ok. VGA output (with a cable) and HDMI output.
• Decent graphics. You can play most games at medium setting with the 1GB DDR5 HD6490M.
• Price is expensive… RM3599

So it’s all pretty good except for the price. Now, I wouldn’t mind it that much if the display were good but all the reviews so far (for overseas models though) say that the display is horrible. If I’m going to be spending half my day looking at that screen, it better be something worth looking at.

Even then, I might forgive the display if the price were accordingly lower. At RM3599, I’d be better off spending my money on a Sony Vaio at the same size and similar specs with a slightly lighter body. Even though people say that Vaios are overpriced (and I tend to agree), at least their displays are awesome. And their keyboards are backlit too.

Oh well, I guess the search for a good laptop goes on.

Device Convergence

It’s all about practicality you see. It’s the thing I carry around the most so I keep wanting more and more things to be crammed in it. “Device Convergence” the slogan goes, and I nod my head in agreement.

Ever since  my N95, I’ve been wanting it. The phone that can be my all in one: my phone, browser, ebook reader, gps navigation, organizer, video player, camera and flashlight. That’s right, ebook reader. I’ve been reading ebooks on my phone for the past 5 years! Thank god the rest of the world has caught up. It used to be pure torture reading those old badly designed ebook files. You see, the market wasn’t big enough back then for publishers to format them properly.

The point though, is that my phone can do plenty things and it’s with me all the time. Therefore, it’s worth it for me to spend a bit more on it.

The search

That search first led me to Windows Mobile phones back in 2008 and they were good for a time. Very customizable. Had fun all day tweaking my phone and putting in custom roms. I couldn’t use iphones yet then, they were still very new and unpolished. 2009 i tried the iphone. It was better than windows mobile. Tons more apps.

But then 2010 came. And I got my android phone. The Nexus One. I’ve had it for a year and a half now with no regrets. But the SGS2 is just too tempting.

You have to understand, I love bigger screens. Ideally I’d take a 5-inch screen handphone. But the SGS2 screen is 4.3 inches of pure win. The camera is an awesome 8 megapixel / full HD affair. And it has a dual-core CPU!!! My phone will have 2 computer brains. How awesome is that?

Waterproofing please? Awww!!!

The only thing that would make this the perfect phone (at least for the next year) would be if it was waterproof. Sadly enough only the Japanese make their phones waterproof and even then only for local phones. *sigh* Oh well, everything else is perfect.

I totally want the SGS2!

I wouldn’t even trade in my current (1.5 year old) phone for an iphone 5 when it comes out. And this SGS2 is a good 10 times more amazing than my current phone is. Unfortunately the price is still a bit inflated. Verdict? Wait a little more for the price to go down. I’ve already been waiting since February anyway. What’s a few more weeks?

That’s right, I’m saving up.

A few weeks ago, I went out with my friends to hangout. So someone said to me, “open your facebook, check some pictures I posted”. So I open the facebook page and start typing in the password. I hesitate a little, unsure of myself. After all I hadn’t logged in for nearly a month already. But I press enter anyway.

PASSWORD INVALID. ACCESS DENIED.

Hmmm, must’ve been the other password. *type* *type*

PASSWORD INVALID. ACCESS DENIED.

Whaaat?! Could it be the OTHER password?

Slowly, tentatively, I press the buttons one by one. Enter.

PASSWORD INVALID. ACCESS DENIED.

I was beginning to hate that message just a little bit.

So what did I do after that? Nothing! Facebook isn’t important enough for me to spend that much time trying to figure out a password. I know I’ve got it saved somewhere. It’s been about 2 months now and I haven’t been on facebook.

There was a short moment when I used a browser that had the password saved so I popped in and approved some friend requests. But then I logged out.  And I can’t be bothered to find out what the password is or to go all the way to that browser just to log in each time.

Anyway, it just means that I have more time that’s not wasted. So don’t find me on facebook, thankyouverymuch. I won’t be there.
P.s. This was actually written last week. I’ve found my password now.

It’s true you know. School is supposed to teach us to learn. Unfortunately, it doesn’t even do that very well. But there’s more to learn in life.

There’s academic literacy, which school can teach. But then there’s spiritual literacy that you often have to find at home. There’s communications ability that you need to have as well. But then, there’s one that most people don’t ever even try to look for which is financial literacy.

How surprised was I to hear that, “You can be broke and still be rich. Broke is temporary. Poor is eternal.”

It doesn’t completely make sense because the person here uses the words rich and poor with a slightly different meaning than what we’re used to. But it basically means that to be truly rich, you need to have the skill and motivation to change your financial ability to become better.

Schools need to start teaching financial literacy.

Privacy on the net

A growing number of people are now posting everything about themselves in facebook status updates and twitter updates.  Including where they are right now. And if people know where you are, it also means they know where you’re not… at home!

Don’t waste time leaving the lights on

Whenever my family heads out on any vacation, we always leave some lights on. It makes sure that people don’t see an empty home ripe for robbing.

We don’t tell anyone either, except a neighbour (who we completely trust) so that they can check in once in a while. Other people stop their subscriptions to any magazines or newspapers so that there isn’t a pile of newspapers out front to show that no one is inside to collect them.

We take all these precautions and all it takes is for someone to check twitter and see the words “With my family catching the sunset in the Philippines!” or “Cairo is really hot…” and they know that you’re out and you’re home is nice and empty.

GPS phones make it worse

Did you know you can update twitter and facebook  from phones now? And if you choose to, they’ll even include your location!

Check out PleaseRobMe.com and see how many people have that option enabled. Here’s a quote from their website.

The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you’re definitely not… home. So here we are; on one end we’re leaving lights on when we’re going on a holiday, and on the other we’re telling everybody on the Internet we’re not home.

It gets even worse if you have “friends” who want to colonize your house. That means they have to enter your address, to tell everyone where they are. Your address… on the Internet… Now you know what to do when people reach for their phone as soon as they enter your home. That’s right, slap them across the face.

- PleaseRobMe.com

Yes people, advertise that you’re not home.

But it’s not just that: Everything on the internet stays there

Make a post about how you hate work. Or what you did on your weekend. Or maybe it’s your friend who makes that post and tags you in a compromising photo. Like one that shows you going rock climbing when you told your boss you were sick with the flu.

Whatever is posted on the internet will get up there and stay there. And your employer may very well find it if they just google your name. Do you know that some companies now force you to add your boss to your facebook profile? They want to make sure you’re not hurting the image of the company.

And if they do find out and you plan to change jobs? The new company you apply at may very well do a google search on you too. You know, just to make sure you’re not a convicted criminal or anything. But instead, that embarrassing blogpost comes up about the time you complained about your company and told all your friends not to buy their products. And the new company goes, “I need a team player, not a whiner”, and they don’t hire you.

Maybe I’m just being paranoid

I could be paranoid. It wouldn’t be the first time. I’m usually very paranoid about my privacy. So please don’t EVER post anything that resembles my address online.

But the first month we had him, he still wasn’t that used to us. I put my finger near him and he BIT me!

Update: Got 2 hamsters now!