Noontech Power Me Polo

Don't you just hate it when your hand phone or tablet loses its juice and you have nowhere to charge it (either you don't have your charger with you or you're out at the mall and there are simply no outlets to plug into). I do! and it has happened to me on numerous occasions! Which is why, when I read about this device at yugatech.com, I decide to buy one at their sister site called Yugadeals. Priced at a discounted rate of Php 2,300 (approximately US$ 53.48), it was quite reasonable as it gives one around 4000mAh of battery juice. Just to give you an idea, here are the mAh equivalent for the following:

iPhone 4s: 1,432 mAh
Blackberry Torch 9800: 1,270 mAh
Blackberry Playbook: 5,300 mAh

So it means I can easily re-charge both hand phones using my Noontech portable battery should they run out of battery at the same time (one at a time though).

The Noontech portable battery is about the size of my blackberry torch 9800...and about the same thickness too but is a little bit lighter than the bb.

The package comes with the portable battery unit, manual, six head for different devices (blackberry, idevices, nokia, LG, HTC, Samsung, etc....see below) and the coiled connecting cord.

Blackberry Playbook being charged after unpacking the portable battery.

I can't wait to actually use this device when one my devices actually runs out of juice. I just have to remember to keep it charged at all time so I don't end up carrying another useless device in my bag!

iPhone 4s

It was never in my plans to purchase an iPhone, any iPhone model in fact. The first and last (I thought it was) iPhone that I ever bought was in 2007 and this was the first generation of the iPhone. Not that I was unhappy with it but I got hooked on Blackberrys, BBMs and email services. My plan was to wait for the Blackberry phones that were supposed to come out early 2012 with the BB10 system in place. Announcements were made and eventually, RIM mentioned that they would come out with the new phones by the end of 2012. I was still ok with this and was actually planning on purchasing a Torch 9810 in the meantime. Until I read an article here which claims that Blackberry executives have been lying to everyone about the BB10 system. Disappointment set in and I decided to go back to what was tried and tested in the past for me, ergo, the iPhone 4s.

The iPhone 4s is the latest handset to be released by Apple which includes an 8mega pixel camera, dual core A5 chip, ios5, iCloud and of course, Siri. I won't go into details anymore about the phone as I'm sure there are a million and one websites that deal with this.

Suffice to say, I am quite happy with the performance and the connectivity choices that I have with my friends who carry iPhones. I have also maintained my old Blackberry Torch 9800 for my friends who would still like to communicate with me via BBM.

My gadgets seeing red! Red is not my favorite color (its green) but its easier to find accessories in this color.

iPod Touch

After months and months of contemplating, I was finally convinced (coerced, is a more appropriate word, I think) into purchasing my first iPod Touch. Why coerced? Well, on my last visit to Hong Kong, I was torn between buying an iPhone4 or a camera. I ended up buying the camera since I thought this would be a more useful gadget for me. I also made up my mind that an iPhone is not for me since:

a. everyone already has one and I'm quite happy with my BB

b. I was one of the first to have the iPhone1 back in 2007 and that was enough to satiate my iPhone craving.

'nude' ipod Touch

But I wanted to try facetime. I also wanted to be able to upload photos instantly to my facebook account like my friend Kim does. I know I already have an iPad but iPads don't have cameras (iPad2 has it) and the iPad isn't really one of the handiest gadgets to lug around specially when you're travelling. So what's the next best alternative to an iPhone that will not break the bank? An Ipod Touch! I checked out the prices in Hong Kong and with the exchange rate, I figured it would still be cheaper to buy my iPod Touch here in the Phils. What I did was buy a case in Hong Kong from an Apple store as there were more choices and the prices were more favorable in Hong Kong.

Beside the iPod Touch case I bought in Hong Kong for only HKD139 (Php 795) which comes with screen protector and earphone detangler

I also already have an iPod Shuffle which I bought last December and its really been super handy whenever I use it to go jogging around Luneta Park. But lately, outside of jogging, it's been frustrating not being able to select the music that you want to hear. I wasn't really in a rush to buy an iPod Touch but at the back of my mind, I kept on thinking about the case that I bought in Hong Kong that is just gathering dust in my cabinet (here's where the 'coercing' part comes in and a poor excuse to purchase something,but I couldn't help it! hehehe). So, before I could stop myself, I ended up buying my iPod Touch!

Beside my iPad and iPod Shuffle

I bought the cheapest entry level model which is just 8gb. I haven't really toyed with it yet as I only plan on using it as a music player. The apps I have in my iPad are already enough for me and I could see the advantage of having a huge screen such as the iPad's. The case from Hong Kong though is now hugging my iPod Touch so I guess everyone is happy (except my wallet). How much was it? P10800 or US$ 245.

Color me red! My iPad, iPod Touch and Blackberry Torch. Red is actually not my favorite color, it just so happen that most cases that are available are either in black or red and I didn't want to go black.

Behind the scene.

Lumix LX5

One of my recent purchases from my Hong Kong is this Panasonic Lumix LX5 camera, a successor of the Lumix LX3 which my cousins and friend have been raving about. I was choosing between a Canon S95, a Panasonic Lumix LX5 and an Olympus XZ1. The first off my list was the S95. Although this is the smallest and lightest of the bunch, its also the weakest in my opinion. I was torn between a LX5 and a XZ1 but the decision was actually taken out of my hand as the XZ1 was not yet available in Hong Kong (it was only launched in January 2011 in the US). And besides, I'm sure the price would still be the sticker price if its that new. So I guess its the LX5 for me then.

First off, I would only settle for the white version of the LX5. Black colored cameras are too common in Manila (or elsewhere for that matter) so a white one was the only one that appealed to me. Fortunately, white colored ones are as easy to find as the black colored ones in Hong Kong.

Second was finding a shop that had the best price and/or deal. In Hong Kong, I only purchase my electronic stuff/gadgets at either Fortress or Broadway. Both shops are littered all over in Hong Kong. They may not be as cheap as the shops in Sham Shui Po or the other smaller shops but I am assured of no monkey business (eg batteries, memory card and other accessories sold separately) when I purchase from Fortress or Broadway. I was adviced by my friend to scout each and every Broadway and Fortress shop in Mongkok. Although they are practically beside each other, they might differ in freebies or even prices at times. I patiently did the rounds and eventually found the best deal. At HKD 3900 or Php 22,230 (others were selling the LX5 at HKD4390 or Php 25,023), the Fortress dealer threw in a camera case (ugly as hell but its free), a memory card reader (very handy), a tripod (an@l bead looking), a screen protector for the camera screen, and (the best part that sweetened the deal and no other dealer was willing to throw in) an extra battery.

Here are the specs of the camera: (I'm no camera expert so these are just the basic specs)
10.1 mega pixels
4.5x digital zoom
3.8x optical zoom
F2.0-3.3
3.0 TFT LCD Display
40MB internal memory
271 g with battery

I'm not a camera connoisseur which is why I always opt for a point-and-shoot and will never convert to a dSLR. Auto settings are fine with me and I rarely tinker with the manual settings. The camera has so far been churning out perfect pictures. I couldn't be happier with my new camera, in short...I just love it!

iPad...2

I just bought my iPad its very first case (in my experience, protective cases do not last for a very long time or I just tend to get tired of it). I was looking for a cheap one and luckily, I stumbled upon this Capdase Soft Jacket 2 Expose in Red. This was the cheapest in the lot and at Php 1,500 (US$ 35), I thought it was a bargain. Aside from including the screen protector, it also came with an attachement that enabled it to act as a stand (3-ways, see attached pictures). And talk about excellent service, this guy from the store where I bought this case, (I forgot the name of the store but its the only Apple reseller store in Robinson's Malate, beside the Crumpler store) meticulously and patiently attached the screen protector. It took some time for him to do it as he wanted to make sure it was perfectly attached to the iPad.

pictures courtesy of www.capdase.com

iPad

After months and months and months and months (you get it) of contemplating, I finally decided to get myself what was once a coveted gadget in the face of the planet, an iPad! I only got the 32g wifi version (as against the wifi+3g) as I believe I do not have a need for internet access everywhere...I already have a laptop and a netbook to do this and besides, wireless broadband in Manila is not fast as one would desire.

I've been playing with it for the past two days and graphics is just something that will blow you off.

Is it worth it? I still haven't utilized the iPad to its max as I still have to get it jailbroken(?) to get all the apps for free (?)

What's not worth it is the US$ 20 screen protector that I bought along with it. It just doesn't want to stick properly and the bubbles just refuse to disappear. I've handled a lot of screen protectors before and I always managed to stick them on my device without any hitch. This is one time I'm hating the screen protector!

The first time I turned it on...familiar Apple logo