Life: My Photography Hobby

I have long interest of photography, started when digital camera gained popularity. My first digital camera was Sony DSC-T300, a compact camera. Then Olympus C-750UZ, an ultra zoom camera, followed by Canon SX30-IS, and finally Fujifilm X10. It was then just a simple hobby, just point and shot photography without thinking of that complicated setting available in the camera, just use Auto mode all the time... he he he.

Sony DSC-T300

Olympus C-750 UZ

Canon SX30-IS

Fujifilm X10

It was only 4 years ago that I started getting serious with this photography hobby. Nikon D7000 was my choice. It is a mid level DSLR camera with APS-C sensor. A very good camera for nature landscape photography which is my main interest. Then my photography travel started and Bali is the first place to visit. I use this DSLR camera for about 2 years and learn about photography more seriously, learn about the basic of photography that I have ignored previously. Well, photography is something that you need to learn from time to time in order for you to be able to take better and better photos.

Nikon D7000

Finally, after gaining more knowledge of photography technics and also more experience by intensive practising, I move to full frame DSLR about two year ago. Still using Nikon brand, it is the entry level full frame, Nikon D610. With two lenses, AF-S NIKKOR 16-35mm f/4G ED VR and AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, it is enough for my photography interest, Nature Landscape and Travel Photography.

Nikon D610

The main issue of DSLR is its weight. Bring along the camera, the lenses, filters, and tripod is quite challenging due to their weight. Travelling with that heavy equipment surely not that convenience, but the experience of seeing the beauty of nature and the satisfaction of capturing nice photos, surely eliminates that concern.

Mirrorless camera technology is getting matured, they have evolved in a rapid pace to challenge the traditional DSLR camera. In 2 or 3 years down the road, mirrorless will gain even more momentum, especially if full frame sensor has perfectly fit in into mirrorless body and the price getting cheaper. Its lighter weight is one of the main advantage.

It was only last year, I decided to jump into mirrorless camera as well. The release of Fujifilm X-T10, a younger brother of the widely well recognised Fujifilm X-T1, one of the best in its class. I use this camera also as pocket camera to replace my Fujifilm X10.

Fujifilm X-T10

In my next blogs, I will also write about photography related content, some photography basic knowledge, technics, and also photography travels. Stay tuned then... :-)

Life: Let's Start Blogging Again

Well... it has been 2 years since my last blog. Busy with life must be a valid reason, ha ha...

Now, I am starting blogging again. This is the first in 2016, promise that there will be more blogs posted throughout the year and in future... :-)

There so much changes in the past 2 years, technology evolving fast, life has been conquered digitally, can't imagine now living without smartphone, instant messaging, and social media. WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram is our daily close friends nowadays. Smartphone has become the most power tool, almost everything can be done, find, explore, process using this small equipment. E-Commerce is everywhere now, online shopping has become daily activity, even in third world countries. I still consider myself lucky be able to experience it all in my life... and I might still witness much more advancement in digital technology in years to come.

That's it for now... I am still warming up... see you in next blogs.

Life: My Gadget Experience for the past One Year

It has been almost one year since I posted my last blog, which I wrote about my experience with combination of Galaxy Note 2, iPad Mini, and BlackBerry Bold 9700.

Since, I have completely retired my BlackBerry Bold 9700 with simple reason... the BBM for Android & iOS has been launched and I can use BBM in my Galaxy Note 2 and even in my iPad Mini as well, so there is no more reason to keep the BlackBerry handset. But then I added the cheap China non-branded smartphone, namely Android Note S7189 (Quad Core CPU, just SGD179 in price) which has dual SIM card feature for also a simple reason, to be used as my mobile broadband wifi hotspot when I was overseas. Since most of the prepaid SIM Card still using normal size, this China smartphone serve me right, no need to keep SIM Card converter.

Android Note S7189

After successfully 'fight' online purchase (for 5000 units which always sold out in less than 1 minute), just two days ago, I received Xiaomi RedMi Note, this is to replace the Android Note S7189. It has much better specs (Octa-core 1.66 GHz Cortex-A7, 2GB RAM, 8GB storage, 720 x 1280 pixels, 5.5" IPS LCD Capatitive) and support Dual SIM card as well. With just SGD199 price, it is surely a killer to other established branded smartphone. Now, I realized how much I overpaid for my Galaxy Note 2 for so many features that I very seldom, and even never, use. I haven't played around much with this new gadget so I can't write much about it. I will write about it separately after have more experience in using it.

Xiaomi RedMi Note

So happy with the combination (Galaxy Note 2, iPad Mini, and Redmi Note) so far. So, what next? Maybe upgrade my iPad Mini... with bigger storage and the one has retina display since I edit my photo to be uploaded to Instagram using iPad Mini most of the time. Maybe, I will wait for iPad Mini 2 then... come on Apple, when??

Life: Gadget Experience after One Year from Last Post

It has been one year since I posted my last blog, which I wrote about my experience with combination of iPhone 4S, Samsung Galaxy Tab, and BlackBerry Bold 9700.

It was in December 2012 that I decided to change the combination to Galaxy Note 2 and iPad Mini (wifi only), and keep BlackBerry Bold 9700. The reason is simple... I need a smartphone with bigger screen, so I changed my smartphone to Galaxy Note 2 which has 5.5" screen (and some additional nice features). As consequence, I changed my tablet to iPad Mini, so I still can experiencing both great OS... AndroidOS and iOS. I bought iPad Mini wifi model only, the cellular model price has quite significant difference in price (SGD170 for 16GB model) that I think it is better buy another small and cheap android smartphone (I bought HTC Desire C) and just tethering it, iPad Mini then still can connect to internet anywhere... and, the small smartphone with normal SIM Card size can be used when I go to overseas and use prepaid SIM Card which still commonly use normal SIM Card size. Quite logical decision, right? :-)

Why iPad Mini and not the normal iPad? Well, I feel that iPad is a way too big and heavy if you thinking of bring it everywhere you go. iPad Mini is just nice, 7.9" screen size, and light. Eventhough its screen is not Retina display, it is still good enough for me, since I use it to browse internet and read news, and some social network apps most of the time. Playing games is just once and a while, not a game addict :-) The battery last quite long, around 10 hours, for my usual usage. And, I have updated it iOS to iOS 7 several days ago. Quite nice and refresh. Its iPhone apps compatibility also improves, with default to 2x zoom (in iOS 6, has 1x and 2x zoom), and the quality of graphics display is much better, so even for Instagram which has no iPad version, the photo display is quite nice already.

As for BlackBerry Bold 9700, it just a matter of time to retire it... especially if BBM for Android can run seamlessly already after last week launching disaster by BlackBerry!!

So far... I am happy with this combination of gadget.

Life: iOS, AndroidOS, BlackBerryOS... One year after...

It is almost one year since I posted my latest blog, wrote about my new Galaxy Tab. So, it almost one year I am experiencing the perfect 3 world of smartphones, iPhone 4S which is running iOS5, Galaxy Tab which is running Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread), and BlackBerry Bold 9700 which is running BlackBerry OS6.

It looks like I was so gadget freak... well, actually not that so. Upgraded my old iPhone 3GS to iPhone 4S is just natural (I skipped iPhone 4), Galaxy Tab that I am using still the 1st generation of Galaxy Tab, and BlackBerry Bold 9700 considered quite old already since there are already newer model which has touchscreen capability. Those gadgets has different purpose which I will explain next, together with my experiences using them. Please take note that those experience and opinion might be specific to the hardware that I owned, it might be different to other users experience. I just want to share.

My main line is iPhone 4S which is used to make calls and sending SMS. iOS interface is the best in term of ease of use, memory management, and system backup (iCloud). I almost having no problem using iPhone 4S, the 'forced' reboot is very very seldom. Its memory management is the best, probably because it still not a pure multitasking Operating System. The apps is running one at one time, even you have opened several apps, the ones not in focus is in suspend mode until you use it again. Yes, you can jailbreak your iOS to have this multitasking capability, but I would prefer not to do that.

iPhone 4S camera (8 megapixel) is considered very good for a smartphone. The quality of photos are generally satisfactory. So, I use my iPhone 4S to shoot photos, process them, and upload them to Instagram (ID: @k_sty). Just using this iPhone 4S, you can become a quite serious amateur photographer! There even new term called "iPhonography" to describe the art of creating photo using iPhone. There are many apps for photo editing available in Apple App Store, so basically you have all necessary tools inside your iPhone. In future posting, I will write about this photo-related topic.

Apple's iCloud works perfectly in keeping the backup of your system. It makes it easier to restore the your existing iPhone content when you have new iPhone, you won't loose your data if you activate this iCloud backup faeture.

iPhone 4S battery is considered poor, with my usage pattern, it can't last even half day. It last roughly in less than 6 hours, especially when works on 3G network. I might ended up charge it 2-3 times per day.

iPhone sound quality also considered so so, nothing special. Its external speaker not even stereo, such a shame for an expensive gadget! Even in iPhone 5 recently launch, its external speaker still mono! OMG!

The tablet that I am currently using is considered the first generation of Android-based tablet. I mainly use it for reading news, social network, listen to songs, and watch videos. Not like iOS strict apps-rule, Android-based apps more loose, so there are many apps that enable you to download media (song, movie, drama serial, music video) from internet. It's additional SDCard slot makes the storage is not an issue. I am very seldom using its camera because, don't know why - maybe because of too many apps installed, its performance is very lagging, so it really inconvenient taking picture with Galaxy Tab. With its considered limited hardware power, I would prefer not playing games in my Galaxy Tab.

One of the useful feature of Android-based smartphone, is internet tethering. You can share existing internet connection and connect your other gadget to this device. I used this feature when I went overseas, I just bought a local SIM card with daily dataplan, use that in my Galaxy Tab, then tethering it, so my iPhone and BlackBerry can surf internet without changing its SIM Card and no need to pay that expensive data roaming. As for BlackBerry, using my existing BBM subscription, I can use it over the WiFi using this tethering, no need to check whether the place where you were has free WiFi or not!

My Galaxy Tab WiFi have a bit problem also, sometimes when you off it then turn it on again, it won't work and fired up, needs to restart the Tab. And, yes, I need to restart my Tab considered quite often, most of the time because its RAM is almost full and Tab starts lagging, even hang! Its memory management is not good.

As for sound quality, not like iPhone, its external speaker is stereo and the quality of sound is quite good compared to iPhone 4S.

BlackBerry usage is strictly for its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM)! BBM still a powerful tool to communicate with my overseas friends since most of them are using it! One limitation of BlackBerry is its small application storage, my Bold 9700 model, after I upgraded to OS6, has only less than 50MB application storage left, no room for any other apps. At least once a week need to be restarted to clear this app storage because the messages and temp files using this application storage. Then, once it left only less that 10MB, BlackBerry performance starts lagging and "hang" indicated by the hourglass pop up very often, because it tries to clear some unused application storage. 

I don't feel an urgency to update my BlackBerry. As long as its BBM works, then it just fine and good enough! :-)

Well, that's what I can share for now after this one year experience using these three gadgets.

I am waiting for iPad Mini... if it really exists, it will change my gadget combination! he he he...

Life: Me and My Samsung Galaxy Tab

I've been using my Samsung Galaxy Tab for almost 2 months now and I would like to share my experience of using it.

But, before that, let me share the reason why I bought Samsung Galaxy Tab, instead of iPad 2 which is more popular in Singapore.

There are 3 main reasons:

First, I already have a BlackBerry 9700 as my phone and I like its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) feature the most, an iPhone 3GS with its fantastic iOS operating system which is very user friendly and smooth interface, so a desire to have an Android-based gadget is a natural feeling that I can't resist. Need to experience the 3 main operating systems in smartphone and tablet world (... sorry for Microsoft, your Windows Phone 7 OS is out of my radar).

Second, the price is just right for me. Under my existing SingTel contract, with no additional subscription cost, I can get Samsung Galaxy Tab at S$198 + S$100 penalty (due to recontract after 1 year). At S$298, for a 3G + WiFi model, it is value for money.

Third, I simply like the design (see picture below), its white back color is nice, and the 7" size and 380 g weight is just right to hold in one hand (especially during travelling using public transport) or put it into my trouser's front pocket (just make sure your trouser is not the stretch or tight model... he he he).

OK. Not let's talk about my experience of using it.

My Samsung Galaxy Tab comes with Android 2.3.3. The touch interface is quite nice and smooth, eventhough it is not at iOS level yet. Different from iOS, the icons on the screen actually a shortcut of items in Applications list and not the application itself, so basically you can place more that one shortcut of an application in the same of any page of the screen. But, so far, I can't move a shortcut from one page to another... I need to delete it and then scroll to another page and create another shortcut. But, it's OK, not big deal.

I am not a serious game player, so I mainly use my Samsung Galaxy Tab for browsing internet, read news (Twitter, by following some news providers), email, watch videos, and social network (Facebook, WhatsApp). With its support of Adobe Flash, it has no problem displaying the websites, but I would prefer to use option to activate the Adobe Flash player only when I need it by touching the part of the website which need Adobe Flash to be played, since it will make website loading faster, and also save battery. With that activities, usually the battery will last about 8 hours before it needs to be charged. If you use it for playing games, the battery will drained faster. And, with its single core 1 GHz processor and 512MB RAM, it is not really meant for serious game players.

Since I only use my mobile internet 3G SIM Card, I haven't use my Samsung Galaxy Tab as a phone yet, so I have no review on its phone feature. But for sure you either need to use hands free kit (which is part of the package) or bluetooth headset, can't use your Samsung Galaxy Tab the way you use your normal phone to make a call... he he he...

Samsung Galaxy Tab's RAM size of 512MB might be considered too little. You will have problem if you install many application with has some background process, services, and tasks. In my case, the free memory is between 150MB at max to only 30-40MB at peak usage. Simply not enough, since it will compromise the performance and also cause the Samsung Galaxy Tab unresponsive, freeze, or even hang completely... I did need to force restart my Samsung Galaxy Tab quite numbers of times already, at least couple of times in a week. Android memory management, in this case, is not that good compares to iOS.

The last is Samsung Galaxy Tab's camera. Since Samsung Omnia smartphone, the quality of image captured using Samsung camera is considered quite good, at least in my eyes. It is quite sharp and acceptable. What you can expect more from a smartphone's camera :).

Here are some sample of pictures taken using my Samsung Galaxy Tab.

The very first picture:

Under the bright day:

Close up, the food:

A Cloudy Morning Sky:

An Afternoon Sky:

An Evening Scene:

An Exhibition:

Indoor Colorful Objects:

Another Indoor Objects:

Using Camera Fun Apps:

FYI: Adobe Flash in Tablets, Does It Really Necessary?

When iPad was initially launched, many people wonder why it doesn't support Adobe Flash... is it simply because of our dear Mr Jobs doesn't like it?? While most of the website heavily use Adobe Flash animation to enrich user experience accessing the website, more dynamic, more interactive... and more fun with those online games... even Facebook becomes so much more fun because of Flash-based games!!

Since I am getting so excited with those Facebook games... I do initially feel that Flash is a necessary animal in tablets, I want to be able to play my favorite games while I am away, while I am waiting somewhere out there, while I am travelling by bus or MRT...

But... yes but!... after window shopping and trying some Android-based tablets (gingerbread and honeycomb) which support Adobe Flash... I guess I started to share Mr Jobs' sentiment... Adobe Flash is not for tablets (at least for several years to come), simply because it is too slow loading it in tablets (even using Wifi, let alone 3G) which processor and memory is 'slow' and 'limited', furthermore it drains battery faster... We should get back to the concept of the tablet itself and for what purpose it exists... even game console was not build using Adobe Flash, it is using its own Operating System and Programming Language!

The answer is out there... there are million of iPad owners can live without Adobe Flash in their iPad!! There are million people still willing to pay premium buying iPad which is without Adobe Flash...

While the existence of Adobe Flash in Android-based tablets still considered a plus, it doesn't give that much value... it just something necessary but not a must. So, iPad2 is now in my horizon... but still considering... still calculating value for money... still back to the basic question, do I really need it? will I use it extensively and for what purpose? so far, my iPhone still be able to serve me well... Arrrgghh!! why our dear Mr 'Genius' Jobs be able to make such attractive product which make our eyes so hungry... guess I need to count the leaves in the garden downstairs to make decision... buy... no buy... buy... no buy... he he he...

FYI: BlackBerry Bold 9700 and OS 6

BlackBerry OS 6 is advertised as "Experience the Revolutionary" in BlackBerry website, and it features many improvement and enhancement, such as "Fast, rich web browsing", "Universal search", "Engaging multimedia", "Social feeds and views", and "Intuitive, fluid design". So, when I was offered to upgrade this OS from my BlackBerry Desktop Manager... I accepted it with all my heart!

It took almost 1 hour to run through all the upgrade process of my BlackBerry Bold 9700. Then... tada... I had it upgraded! And, I have BlackBerry Bold 9700 with OS 6 installed! Yes, it is very intuitive and nice to have. There are quite number of enhancements which I believe meant for the touch user interface in BlackBerry Torch. I was happily played around with it and explore the new interface and functionalities.

Well... then here comes the setback... in just a couple days, I was facing with the persistence hour glass, which means it became unresponsive because it did its background process... and finally realized that my BlackBerry Bold 9700 (Memory: 256MB) is facing Low Apps Memory... I have quite number of third party apps installed which consumed memory (before upgrade, it left only around 20MB free apps memory, but it still ran quite smoothly). So, I have no choice than started uninstalling those apps one-by-one until it left with only some essentials apps. But, unfortunately, that memory-hungry OS 6, gradually still "eat" the limited memory and when it gets worse, I have to restart my BlackBerry. Well, seems something beautiful and nice, really came with "cost". No turning back, so I just have to live with it... :(

Finally, my two cents advice, if you have BlackBerry which has memory 256MB and below, DON'T upgrade to OS 6, unless you don't really have/need third party apps at all in your BlackBerry, because it will be painful to have your BlackBerry performance keeps lagging, freezing, and need frequent restarting.

This OS 6 works seamlessly in models with 512MB memory and above.

Korean Drama: Kim Tae Hee

It's been quite long that I haven't write any actress from Korean Drama, last time was some time in 2009. But after last 4-days marathon watching My Princess, I decided to write this topic once again in this blog.

First time saw her in Stairway To Heaven acted as an Antagonist main character in 2003, then as main actress in Love Story in Harvard in 2004. This young Korean Actress, Kim Tae Hee, has been in a long journey in her career before landed at her highest level as main actress in IRIS (2009) and the latest, My Princess (2010).

What I can remember is her cute face, and beautiful-bright-and-big eyes in Stairway To Heaven (especially when she is angry or showing her evil character... he he he), then cheerful character in Love Story In Harvard, then serious character in IRIS. But still, her beautiful-bright-and-big eyes which eye-catching the most!

From tons of her pictures those can be found in internet (just google it!), here are some pictures of Kim Tae Hee that I like most:

FYI: Wireless Charging

Thinking of charging your mobile phone, smartphone, gadget, or gaming device without power cable? Is it possible? Seems like a future in the sci-fi movie... But, wait! It is something that already does exist! There is already technology for wireless charging.

Reading from some resources in the web, there are three method of wireless charging:

1. Inductive Charging
   In inductive charging, an adapter equipped with contact points is attached to the device's back plate. When the device requires a charge, it is placed on a conductive charging pad, which is plugged into a socket. This method is used for charging mid-sized items such as cell phones, MP3 players and PDAs.
2. Radio Charging
   Wireless radio charging works similarly. A transmitter, plugged into a socket, generates radio waves. When the receiver attached to the device is set to the same frequency as the transmitter, it will charge the device's battery. This method is used for charging items with small batteries and low power requirements, such as watches, hearing aids, medical implants, cell phones, MP3 players and wireless keyboard and mice.
3. Resonance Charging
   In resonance charging, a copper coil attached to a power source is the sending unit. Another coil, attached to the device to be charged, is the receiver. Both coils are tuned to the same electromagnetic frequency, which makes it possible for energy to be transferred from one to the other.The method works over short distances (3-5 meters). This method is used for charging items that require large amounts of power, such as an electric car, robot, vacuum cleaner or laptop computer.

But, well... actually it is not all wireless... the sending unit still needs to be attached to the power source using power cable and plug... so, the wireless one is the receiving unit.

For consumer products, this wireless charging still very limited. But, years ahead this technology will be more and more in the market. Today, I spotted one website which sells this wireless charging device for smartphones... quite interesting... the product called PowerMat Wireless Charging System.

Interested to know more? Visit its website here.

FYI: PingChat! (Free)

Smartphone is getting more popular, and more affordable too. One of the major advantage is its ability to run the popular social networking applications which connecting family members, friends, or colleagues... whenever and wherever.

Currently there are three major players: iPhone (iOS), Android-based, and BlackBerry.

While connecting one-to-one is the basic feature, connecting as a group is quite limited. Eventhough Facebook runs on all platform, it doesn't have group-chat feature (yet). Some popular messengers (Yahoo!Messenger, MSN) also available in all platforms, but they also don't have group-chat feature (yet). They have conference feature, but you should invite the members everytime need to chat, not permanent. One that have this group-chat feature is BlackBerry with its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), but it's ONLY among the BlackBerry users, and not everyone fans of BlackBerry...

PingChat! is one of the apps that runs on all those three platforms (iOS, Android, and BlackBerry) and have group-chat feature (as of the time I write this blog, the group chat max. 15 members, hopefully they will increase it in the future). Beside that, it also be able to send picture, audio, and video. The interface is also nice and looks professional. It uses the push notification method, so it works like SMS. The best of all, it's FREE.

PingChat! is always Online. There is no concept of signing in or signing out in PingChat!, unlike other instant messaging platforms. Once you install PingChat! and register your PingChat! ID, you will be always be online. This is great because you don't have to wait for your contacts to sign in to be able to chat with them.

Interested to know in detail? Go to PingChat website here.

FYI: Pray For Indonesia

Lately, so many natural disasters happened in my beloved country... Actually, it started several years ago when big tsunami swept the coastal area of Aceh with so many victims... one by one disaster struck year by year, mainly because Indonesia located in what called 'Ring of Fire' in the border of two plateau, which naturally very slowly move and do adjustment to find balance... tectonic earthquakes and mount eruptions here and there... the latest was the Mentawai Tsunami and Mount Merapi eruption.

Spotted this picture in one of my friends profile in BlackBerry Messenger...

Each of the PRAY character represents each of the official religions in Indonesia. Side by side in solidarity and tolerance to each other.

The P represents Moslem (picture of Mosque)
The R represents Christian/Catholic (Church picture)
The A represents Buddhist (Borobudur)
The Y represents Hindu (Balinese Temple)

Let's Pray for Indonesia...

iPhoneApps: Pocket Frogs (free)

I spotted this iPhone game last week and start playing it... and I hooked to it already... such a simple but cool and fun game. Discover, collect, trade, and breed over unique frogs. Place your collection in habitats, each habitat can have 8 frogs, and place it in the pond to feed, grow, and breed... and there are limitless supply of dragonfly for your frogs to eat by just jumps over it :) and yes, some rewards (frogs, background, coins, or scenery) as well if you are lucky.

Not sure how many levels does this game have, but I am already @ level 6 after playing it for less than a week.

You can connect with your friends with Plus+ and trade frogs and habitat items with them. You can also view your friends' habitats and frogs.

Here are some screen capture of my latest Pocket Frogs status:

See more screen captures from my Pocket Frogs album here.

FYI: Gundam Fiesta 2010

Same as it was done last year, Gundam Fiesta 2010 was held at Compasspoint Mall - Sengkang, from 1-13 September. So, this is the second time I was be able to see this nice exhibition.

Eventhough it wasn't much different from last year, there were quite numbers of new Gundam models was shown. One of them was very unique, a Merlion Gundam!!

Here are some more others that I can highlight as some of the new Gundam models or that I haven't see yet in last year exhibition.

Here are the complete photo taken from the Gundam Fiesta 2010.

Life: Me and My BlackBerry

I know about BlackBerry phone for quite long time... it has very strong positioning as corporate's mobile phone with its push email feature. So, in my mind, only executives from all those big corporates is suitable of using this mobile phone since they need to check their email wherever they are. So, different to other mobile phone producers, BlackBerry maintains its own server to handle the data traffic with cooperation with the telecommunication providers, so all traffics will go directly to BlackBerry servers, well... it is quite crucial because they need to make sure the privacy and confidentiality of their clients' emails.

And, for so long, I never interested in using any of this BlackBerry phone... simply because I didn't see any value of using it (yet), I don't need its push email feature, and I am not a corporate executive.

But, last year, I saw a very interesting phenomenon where BlackBerry becomes a very popular among the Indonesians. It is quite amazing how BlackBerry can penetrate Indonesia's consumer market. Well, I believe it is a combination of the virtually 'unlimited' internet connection, and the booming of social networking activities which fits into its BlackBerry Messenger application. So, just using one device, user can fulfill his/her social networking addicts, without headache of high internet charges, wherever and whenever... :)

But, still... I keep my windows mobile smartphone and even got involved in the iPhone-hive... until last week... :) At last, I bought my own BlackBerry Bold 9700... the black one, not white one which is not that classy... anyway it has to be black, right? otherwise it has to change name to WhiteBerry then... he he he...

Why? Simply because I see the value of having it... most of my friends in Indonesia are using BlackBerry, so BlackBerry Messenger is the best tool to communicate with them, instead of Facebook and Yahoo! Messenger.

In term of price, since I have re-contract option and SGD100 voucher from SingTel, I got it @ SGD198 with 2 years contract. Worth it!

Besides, my windows-based LG-KS20 smartphone was underused, has been downgraded to just to make calls and send SMS only... and already considered 'too old' for a phone... :)

I have been using this BlackBerry for one week now... so far so good... BlackBerry Messenger is the application that I used most... eventhough it has Facebook and Twitter application, I still prefer using iPhone for those two apps. The 3.2MPixel camera is adequate, it has flashlight so can take good picture in the dark... The original leather case is nice and realize it has surprising function, when you put the phone inside it, the phone will 'sleep' (the screen will off), the when you take it out, let's say because it flashes due to new message, the screen will display the message right away without need to press any button. I found it quite surprising and distinct.

I found that BlackBerry Messenger is quite cool... it has Groups feature and can share pictures and make comments about it... No wonder, my friends less and less active and seen in Facebook and Yahoo! Messenger, they are all in BlackBerry underground!! Gotcha!!

I still love playing around with my BlackBerry Bold 9700 and explore more what can I do with it... Now, I am experiencing both of best world of smartphone... BlackBerry and iPhone. Cool...

FYI: A Whale of a Sailing Trip

Source: TheSun.co.uk - News

A COUPLE'S cruise was nearly sunk when a 40-ton WHALE landed on their yacht.

The massive Southern Right Whale had flipped into the air and smashed their mast.

Terrified Ralph Mothes, 59, and Paloma Werner, 50, were helpless as it thrashed around on the ten-metre vessel, before slipping back into the sea off Cape Town, South Africa.

The shaken couple used their engine to get back to shore. Paloma said yesterday: "It really was quite incredible - but very scary."

FYI: New Sea Creatures Found on Barrier Reef

Source: BBC News - In Pictures
Researchers from the Queensland Brain Institute used remote-controlled cameras that sat on the sea floor, 1,400m (4,600ft) below the surface.

FYI: Larval Flounder

Source: National Geographic - Translucent Marine Animals
Photograph by David Liittschwager, National Geographic

A translucent body disguises a larval flounder to keep it safe from predators. It will lose this defense mechanism later in life. Flounder undergo several striking physical transformations during their lifetimes. Very young flounder swim upright and have an eye on each side of their face. As they age the fish begin to swim on their sides and one eye slowly migrates until both are on the body’s “top side.”

FYI: Frilled Shark

Source: National Geographic - Deep-Sea Creature
Photograph by Awashima Marine Park, Getty Images

Humans rarely encounter frilled sharks, which prefer to remain in the oceans' depths, up to 5,000 feet (1,500 meters) below the surface. Considered living fossils, frilled sharks bear many physical characteristics of ancestors who swam the seas in the time of the dinosaurs. This 5.3-foot (1.6-meter) specimen was found in shallow water in Japan in 2007 and transferred to a marine park. It died hours after being caught.

iPhoneApps: iOS4 - An Initial Review

iOS4 might be one of the most waited Operating System since Mr Steve Jobs announced it several months ago. It has tons of new features, but for me as end user, there are two main and important features that I have waited so long: Folders and Multitasking. These two features are already exists for for quite long for iPhone if you are willing to 'jailbreak' your iPhone. Since I bought my iPhone 3GS, I have waited patiently for these features released by Apple itself.

Yesterday was the first day of this iOS4 available for download while the pre-requisite iTunes 9.2 has been available days before. I might be among those users rush into the queue to download it. The first try, it failed, but the second time, amazingly it was downloaded very fast, less than 10 minutes... and, tada... in less the 1 hour, my iPhone upgraded to iOS4... :) soooo happy and couldn't wait to try it.

Of course, the first thing that I did was to reorganize my 11 pages Apps into folders and just keep the most used Apps kept out of folder. In the end, it occupies only 5 pages. This Folders feature works seamlessly. Creating folder is very easy, just drag one Apps into another Apps, both will the kept into a new folder. One folder can consists of 12 Apps (4 columns x 3 rows).

Then, time for testing the Multitasking feature... In my expectation, all Apps put into the background will keep running, or at least suspend in its latest status, so when I return back to it, I can continue using it... BUT, yes a big BUT, I am quite disappointed with iOS4 Multitasking because it doesn't match my high expectation... because when I got back to the suspended Apps, the Apps was running from the beginning again... :(
There might be 2 reasons: first, the Apps are not iOS4-compatible yet (I expect quite number of Apps updates in the next few weeks), and/or second, Apple purposely limit this Multitasking for only some kind of applications to preserve the power and performance of the iPhone (I know that Apple very concern about this). So, for me, the current Multitasking is more for the purpose of fast-switching between Apps which has been loaded in memory... well, quite wasted... worse, it even gives user additional things to do... to stop the Apps which all loaded into memory once it is run, when user needs to release some memory... alas! Probably, Apple should consider only when user double-click (or long button press??) on home button the Apps suspended and keeps the one-click to close the Apps.

I then compare this Multitasking with my friend's iPhone that 'jailbreak'ed on the same Apps... hmm, honestly... 'jailbreak' done a much better job on this Multitasking feature... eventhough the Apps itself was suspended, but when you get back to that Apps, you can continue from where you left it. Isn't it the purpose of Multitasking??? Arrrggghhhh...

Well, should I 'jailbreak' my iPhone when its stable version available for iOS4??? Hmm... I think I will wait for several weeks until most of the Apps updated with their iOS4-compatible version.

Last words, as usual, Apple did good job on the interface... still smooth and very responsive as usual, beautiful, and cool... :)

iPhoneApps: Camera Fun (free & pro)

I love taking pictures and, lucky, I live in digital era where digital camera becomes standard and a mature technology. Taking pictures is so easy and convenience, no need too much skill, just take... take... and take, if you don't like it just delete it.

iPhone 3GS 3-megapixel camera is quite OK, especially if you compare it with Blackberry's camera :). The picture quality is acceptable eventhough not fantastic. In iPhone's amazing screen, the pictures looks quite sharp.

There are a lot of Apps in App Store that offer many enhance features and all other nitty-gritty about camera settings and tools that I personally not really understand for what purpose... he he he... probably the professional photographers will love it. Camera Fun (Free / Pro) is one of them, it is more emphasize of picture effect. In its Free edition, it comes with Canvas, Sepia, Sketch effect. It has more effects in its Pro edition (US$0.99). But for me, this Free edition is enough, because I only use for its Sketch effect, which I like so much because the result is fantastic and very nice, especially if it is applied to image of objects... but, it is not that nice for taking human image with this sketch-effect. Well, anyway, better take human picture in normal mode, right? :)

iPhoneApps: Facebook & Twitterrific (free)

In this social-networking era, not having a social-networking apps installed in your iPhone is a kind of strange... :) so, Facebook is considered mandatory... While it is very convenience to have Facebook in iPhone so you are connected wherever you go and can update your profile or upload photos any time, as it is inherited from iPhone, no adobe-flash support, so forget it to play your favorite Facebook games like FarmVille, CafeWorld, or FishVille in your iPhone... huh!

I am not a fans of Twitter... in term of social networking, I don't see Twitter is quite useful since I am not a famous person, or public figure who the legion of followers (or fans) would love to follow my tweet or curious about any news about me... :))

But, I found another way to use Twitter as a useful apps... as news consolidator for me... By following some favorite news broadcasters, I don't need to open each of their's website, just open Twitterrific and I can get the up-to-date and hot news in a second, amazing! And, since every tweet has link to the complete news, I just touch it and read, because Twitterrific will open in in separate screen without need to leave the apps... so convenience!

iPhoneApps: iRDesktop (free)

The first iPhone application that I looked for after I bought iPhone is the similar application like Remote Desktop in Windows-based smartphone. This is what made me delay buying iPhone and kept loyal to Windows Mobile.

iRDesktop is the answer... it works seamlessly with Windows RDP and the setup options even better than Windows Mobile's Remote Desktop. It allows user to define each Remote Connection its own resolution, username and password, and colors depth. And, can open several connections at one go, but of course, you can activate only one at a time... Furthermore, inherit iPhone features, user can zoom and pan the remote desktop screen as in the Safari browser, as well as rotate the device to switch between portrait and landscape views.

And the best of all, it is FREE.

Go to its website for detail information.

Music: Three Drama, Three OST, One Singer - Hikaru Utada

Honestly, I don't listen to Japanese songs that much... There is one song that was a big hit in 1982 which I still remember and love to listen until now, the song titled "Kokoro No Tomo" by Mayumi Itsuwa.

It was 3 Japanese Drama that I watched in the past few years with 3 nice Original Sound Track (OST) that attracted my attention. And, surprisingly, all those three nice songs was written, composed, and sung by one singer: Hikaru Utada. Wow... she is such a talented artist... almost all songs in her album were written, composed, and sung by her. I really admire that talent!!

First song, "First Love", OST of "Majo no Joken" or known as "Forbidden Love" in its English title. Quite interesting drama about 'against-all-odds' love story between teacher and her high school student...

Second song, "Prisoner of Love", OST of "Last Friends". Another interesting drama about complicated, strange, and unusual multi-angle love story between friends... I love the psychological side of each characters in the drama.

Third song, "Eternally", OST of "Innocent Love". A simple drama about power of love... on how someone who dedicated his love to someone who actually doesn't love him, but in the end he finally found that true love from someone else who can appreciate his dedicated and unconditional love... so sweet...

Life: Me and My iPhone

I have been using iPhone for 3 months (mainly for surf internet, facebook-ing, instant messenger-ing, and playing games) and I am not surprised that I am hooked to it... I trust my 'radar' when I walk because my attention is on my iPhone... ha ha ha... hopefully I never bump into something or somebody... touch wood!

Even before I buy iPhone, I knew for sure how does it feel using one of the great product of the decade. But, there were 2 reasons why I was not among the earlier users of iPhone: First, because I need Remote Desktop to connect remotely to my PC and servers. Second, I am a StarHub subscriber and iPhone was only tied up with SingTel. So, for months, I was using Samsung Omnia plus the free-and-unlimited 3G mobile internet SIM Card from my MaxOnline Plus subscription.

Why I like iPhone so much? Well... the answer is quite universal I guess... well-designed product, smooth and responsive touch interface, large and very good quality screen (even still visible under the bright sun), and tons of applications in its AppStore with so many free or lite edition so I can try it first before decide to buy it. It is true that large availability and variety of applications is the fresh blood of the iPhone's life, almost all what you need you can find it there... just a matter whether you are willing to pay for it or not :)

iPhone connection to network is also very smooth... whenever it can find WiFi, it will connect seamlessly... and it will connect to 3G if there is no WiFi available. The connection shifting between WiFi and 3G is done automatically, without annoying interruption...

Same as the new launch iPad, iPhone still lack of 2 features: Java Runtime and Flash Player, two commonly used components in internet world. Not sure why Apple 'hates' these two components... is it because those two components considered processor and memory hungry that can slowdown iPhone? Not sure... but hopefully they will be part of next iPhone OS upgrade... Ah ya, one more... iPhone doesn't support multitasking... (well, you can have it though by 'jailbreaking' your iPhone... at your own risk...)

iPhone limits the Apps storage up to 11 pages only... which is not enough for me because I love to try out those free and lite apps, so I need to keep removing unused apps to free space for new ones. Wish it comes with folder concept or at least two level storage of apps in next OS upgrade... or simply make it unlimited as long as the storage still enough to keep it.

In my next article on iPhone, I will write more on my review and recommendation on its applications, especially the ones those I am using in my iPhone.

There is no day without my iPhone... I love this product so much!! :)

FYI: Persian Leopards

Source: Yahoo!News - At The Zoo
Persian Leopards Razan and Marum are pictured at the zoo in Chemnitz, eastern Germany in 2007. Russia on Tuesday asked Iran if it would be prepared to supply rare Persian leopards as part of a Russian project to reintroduce the big cat to its Caucasus region. (AFP/DDP/File/Uwe Meinhold)

FYI: Cuban Tree Frog, Florida

Source: National Geographic on Photo of the Day: Best of August 2009

Quote from the original article:
"This is a Cuban tree frog on a tree in my backyard in southern Florida. How and why he ate this light is a mystery. It should be noted that at the time I was taking this photo, I thought this frog was dead, having cooked himself from the inside. I'm happy to say I was wrong. After a few shots he adjusted his position. So after I was finished shooting him, I pulled the light out of his mouth and he was fine. Actually, I might be crazy but I don't think he was very happy when I took his light away."

Photograph by James Snyder

FYI: The Secret Slaughter of the Dolphins

While I was browsing the news in internet, I read a shocking article in thesun.co.uk website about the secret slaughter of the dolphins.

The most shocking moment was when I saw the picture of the sea turns red with the blood of the dolphins massacred by fishermen in the cove at Taiji, in Japan (below).

Taiji, the small Japanese coastal town - population 3,000 - is the largest supplier of dolphins to marine parks and programmes around the world.

Once the Dolphins are trapped inshore, dolphin trainers fly in from around the world to select the fittest young, mainly female, animals to put them in captivity. But it is what happens to the hundreds remaining that is so shocking. The locals herd them around the edge of the bay to a secret cove, fenced off with barbed wire and patrolled tightly by security men and police. The dolphins are never seen again.

Nearly 2,000 dolphins are slaughtered in Taiji every year - stabbed with sharp poles as they desperately try to escape.

While we are so happy and amaze watching the Dolphin shows (most of the Dolphins were taken from their free life at the sea into captivity) and praise them for their intelligence, we don't realize what was happened behind it... how they were captured, what happened to thousands of them, how some people didn't realize they ate slaughtered/massacred Dolphins meat (as substitute of whale meat)... I just can't imagine it does happens... :(

Read the full article here.

FYI: Baby Panda Sleeps

Source: TheSun.co.uk, published on 10 Nov 2008.

Text quoted from the article:

"IT’S hard work being a panda cub – and these exhausted specimens can bearly keep their eyes open.
The cuddly characters curled up for fur-ty winks before feeding time at a busy breeding research centre.

Bosses at the base in Chengdu, South West China, hope to boost numbers of the endangered beast via artificial breeding techniques.

But this dozy lot were more interested in their bamboo-ty sleep.

After all, they wouldn’t want dark rings round their eyes."

FYI: Gundam Fiesta 2009 in Singapore

So far, I only know that my nephew is big fan of Gundam... everytime he came to Singapore, for sure he will buy one or two, and he has collected quite number of Gundam plastic models. And, so far, I only shake my head everytime he bought it because it is not cheap... at least SGD25 per model.

Since yesterday, there is Gundam exhibition in the mall near my house. They call the event, Gundam Fiesta 2009 (2 - 14 Sep), to celebrate its 30 years. Curiously, I walk through the exhibition and, instantly, I amaze with it... so many kinds of it and not only little children and teenagers love it... even young adults love it too!! I took out my Samsung Omnia and start took picture of those plastic models.

Well... it reminds me of my childhood time, this kind of toy is considered expensive item for me and, that time, I only had one F18 Hornet model (don't know where it is now)... assembled it took quite amount of time but very enjoyable...

Interested and want to know more about Gundam? Visit this Wikipedia page.

Here are the complete photo taken from the Gundam Fiesta 2009.