There are times that I will be reviewing gadgets that are way too expensive for my budget. My solution? Review those who have reviewed. This week, we'll take a look at the highly anticipated 5800 XpressMusic by Nokia. There are two popular online articles you should check out if you want a detailed review of the mobile phone: Yugatech.com and Technogra.ph.
Their impressions of the mobile phone is pretty much the same. At the price of PHP19,990, the enjoyment anyone could have in this touchscreen phone by Nokia is worth it. The only difference of their review is that Yugatech viewed it as a consumer while Technogra viewed it as a potential buyer. One thing I noticed though is that Technogra noted the TV-out while Yuga missed it.
Check out their reviews. They are very detailed and would give an honest opinion on the mobile phone. For me, even before I read those reviews, I am already bugged my mom about the phone. "Maybe in December" she says.
(Note: Since I have to review anything, that includes food. It's a personal view but I try to keep my palettes as universal as possible.)
For this week, we'll take a look at two popular foods that I and most Ilonggos like: Batchoy and Rice Toppings.
There are two popular batchoy houses in the city - Deco's and Ted's La Paz batchoy. Deco's claim that before the time Ted's established its name on the popular menu, Deco's was already there. Personally, I haven't seen them before they were revived by the owners of Mang Inasal.
Comparing Decos and Ted's is almost unfair. Each Batchoy has a distinct taste which caters to a specific market. Ted's traditional taste always hits the spot. The right combination of meat, liver and other components makes the money worth it. I really love the smell of Ted's when you enter their Batchoy houses - the smell of the "caldo" is better than anywhere I've ever been.
On the other hand, Deco's appeal is largely based on the fact that its the original. But instead of being traditional, the ambiance was upped a little bit. The seats are more cushy, the service counters are modern and they even have free wifi but I don't dare use my laptop on Decos since I don't want any caldo to spill on my computer while I eat there. For the taste, I think their unique formula really appeals to some people. Concentration on the liver and other intestines is emphasized there so if you compared Decos with Teds, Teds is a little sweet while Decos has that flavor distinct yet enjoyable flavor.
Now on to the next show...rice in a box.
If I'm not mistaken, there are two rice in a box stalls in the city. The one that concentrates on cooking right after your order or the precooked ones. The precooked rice in the box (in picture) is found in Robinsons in front of a Magazine stand, ground floor. For only PHP39.00 you get to choose chicken, pork or beef mixed with oriental and filipino sauces.
The other rice in a box is found in Atrium wherein it's a mixture of vegetables such as carrots and peas while adding patis, salt and msg. The flavor differs from the fact that it adds some flavoring. The price is almost the same but they do have a variety based on the flavor.
There you have it. Two meals found in Iloilo. Suggest foods that I have to try. I can be a ginuea pig with a big stomach :)
Years ago, the only way you could write office documents was through the mighty MS Office - Your MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel and other products. Sure you have notepad and wordpad but they don't do anything in terms of customization.
Honestly, MS Office is probably the best product Microsoft has to office to its consumers - next to XP. Vista, Windows Live, Messenger, Hotmail and other products can't even be at par with the popularity of MS Office. The sole reason why MS Office is working well and popular is because it has the ability to improve. Want proof? BUY the latest Office 2007 and judge for yourself. A little bit complicated at first but better eventually.
If there's one disadvantage on MS Office - its money. If you don't have any money, tough luck because you can't have this application.
That is why two office products, AbiWord and OpenOffice are viable alternative.
Some say that OpenOffice is better. Yes, because they're free but charge people for it and they will probably go sour on the product. That is also the same with AbiWord. However, AbiWord is a special case since they really don't have the hype so they should be free.
There's actually one function that OpenOffice and AbiWord should work on to be at par with MS Office and that function is Word Count. Yes the ALT > T > W function for word count. MS Office only use CNTRL C and Office 2007 even updates you as you write. You might think that this function is not important but talk to writers and they can attest they are actually paranoid if they can't reach 10,000 words or something.
AbiWord and OpenOffice guys: improve word count function please and don't just present it as a plug-in. It's too complicated.
The thought of having Blu-Ray players at home is still a relatively obscure concept for me. I already have a DVD player and I'm already enjoying the resolution. I mean, c'mon, why do you really want it to be that crisp and clear. It's just disappointing to see the laugh lines and stretch marks of our favorite stars.
Anyway, I spotted a Blu-Ray player here in our city. Nope, I'm not talking about the Sony PlayStation 3. I'm talking about stand alone Blu-Ray player. The cost: a whopping 39,000.
There are two problems here in the Iloilo City. Please correct me if I'm wrong:
First: There are no Blu-Ray discs here. I don't think Blu-Ray is compatible with DVDs. Second: With the same price, you can get a powerful PlayStation 3. It's a gaming console and Blu-Ray player rolled into one.
But the good news is that this signals that something better is coming to the city. Hopefully it will not cost me my limb in the future.
When I read that Astone is dropping their UMPC to PHP10,000.00, I immediately scrapped all my money to get this baby. After a few days of transaction, I finally got my Astone.
Packaging
PC Corner is not only efficient in selling great computers but also great with packaging. You can practically place water inside and it will never leak. For Astone's packaging, what you'll get is a lame user's manual, CD driver, power adapter and another adapter for video out, the UMPC is securely placed in a styro but I had never have a problem taking it out.
First Impressions
Except for the battery, everything else is pieced together really tight. I don't know why but my battery is a little bit movable but this has never affected the battery's performance.
Using the UMPC
The tiny keyboard is no problem for me. It may take a day or two to get used to it but if you use this for two to three hours a day you'll get used to it. The challenge though is in the mouse pad which is really, really small that I have to constantly life my fingers to move the mouse to the other side of the monitor. By the way the monitor is just ok and didn't have any problem at all.
Software
Astone came with 30-day evaluation period for XP which was provided by the local distributor.
Speed
Start-up is really slow but once it's stable, the applications will work without any problem. What I found weird though is the inability of the UMPC to handle too many tasks at once. Multi tasking with two applications running in the background push place your UMPC into screeching halt.
Touchscreen, Bluetooth
Yep, Astone even with its price is a touchscreen UMPC with Bluetooth. The pointer goes with the pen before the command is being executed. By the way, the webcam is located on the left side of the application.
So should you buy it?
If you have an extra budget, you can get this gadget a shot. But that will only happen if you already have another laptop that will be used at home. This should be your companion on the road. With the price of 10,000, this laptop is already a steal.
UPDATE: The XP Bundled UMPC will cost you an additional 2k.
