As everyone already knows by now, Google officially annouced the Nexus One Cellphone yesterday. They even said it would be coming to Verizon Wireless in the spring. Add to that Motorola rumored to be releasing a keyboard-less Droid on VZW as well makes me fairly excited.
I’ve had the opportunity to play with the Droid over the Christmas Holiday. And I really like it. I like the UI, the way it feels, the way it works. All that said, I don’t like the keyboard, don’t want the keyboard and, at least on that phone, don’t need the keyboard. One of the reasons I’m watching CES coverage closely this year.
We know that I’ve been using the Blackberry for a bit more than a year. I like the Blackberry because it’s a great communication tool. It has great call quality and for email and messaging, most would agree, it can’t be beat. However, it doesn’t do web. Ok, that’s a lie because it does have a “browser”, but it isn’t any good. It’s slow, barely supports HTML4 and the screen is really too small to be useful.
The only problem I have with this batch of new phones is that I am stuck without the ability for a cheap upgrade until 2011 due to issues with Blackberry Storm. So I’m going to start setting cash aside so I can upgrade when the selection of Droid devices increases at my local VZW store.
Or, do I save that money for a few more months to possibly get an iPhone?. I still don’t see this as happening but really would like to be surprised, which I also don’t see happening. Can you imagine if Apple were to announce a VZW iPhone for the summer? Sales would stop at VZW while people waited. Pretty sure that isn’t going to happen.
So, I’m holding out until March. More as it becomes available.
It is actually much too late on the day before Sunday. No, scratch that. It’s much too early Sunday. I’m tired, a little loopy and having a hard time keeping my eyes open, but for some reason I am compelled to put words to screen.
This could go anywhere
Honestly. I’m sitting at my desk letting my fingers just dance across the glorious Apple keyboard that sits directly in front of my 20″ iMac. There are cables connecting the two that constantly get in the way, but I’m just too damned cheap to pony up the $80 for the bluetooth keyboard.
I’ve mentioned this keyboard many times in the past. I really enjoy using it. I mean, really enjoy it. I actually like this one better than the one that I have at the office, which is about 2 weeks old. Why? This one is all broken in. The buttons finally work as I expect them too. The keys are smooth and silky and have a pleasant feel about them as my fingers press. The action is fluid, quiet and yet, at the same time, slightly mechanical in a very satisfying way.
Yes, I do love my keyboard.
Don’t get me wrong. That old IBM keyboard that came with my 286 back in the early 90’s was a wondrous piece of gear. It was loud, solid and keying on that board was almost the same as using a typewriter back in high school. Connected with a tightly coiled cable that was forever getting in the way of something, it was still an awesome keyboard. You could get a serious rhythm going with that board and once in the groove, man, the places it could take you.
Between the boards, there have been others. I even tried one of the Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboards for a spell. While I didn’t dislike it, I’m a lazy typist that doesn’t know where the numbers are without looking, and taking a hand off of that thing to work the 10 pad was inconvenient and really slowed things down.
There was also a slew of Logitech boards with the myriads of PCs that I have used over the years. Not too bad either. Satisfying sounds and feel, wireless, comfortable and good to type on. Hell, most of the posts on this site and this one before ‘07 were made with a Logitech board. And there was some good stuff.
But, and this is just my own humble opinion, not as good as the stuff that came after.
Yes, I do love my keyboard. Is that strange? Maybe. If you don’t love yours, then perhaps you should take some time out of your day today and get to shopping. If your computer is a tool, then the keyboard is the handle and you really should find something that works for you, fits well in your hand and is pleasing to use. Otherwise, you might as well use a pencil. I shudder at that thought.
You should be able to use a keyboard like you use your car. When you reach for something, it’s just there. You didn’t have to look because your hands knew what it would find when it landed. A good keyboard is exactly like that.
And I love mine.
This is a post that’s been in the queue for about a month. I forgot about it until recently.
Over the past few weeks I’ve gotten a few question about the Mac, since I was the only one at the office that had one. Many of them think the Mac doesn’t crash. Many of them still think that their files won’t work. In general, just a bit of misinformation.
This is for you Windows users out there that might be a little curious about the Mac. The following observations are from my own experience. Your mileage may vary.
- Yes, Macs crash. Not as often as Windows, but they do.
- The Mac does not have a BSOD. Instead you get a Kernel Panic, and much less often. In 2 years, I’ve seen 2 on my Mac.
- Yes, applications of the Mac crash. Yes, just as often as they do on Windows.
- The Mac, just like your Windows machine, benefits from the occassional reboot.
- The Mac, unlike a Windows PC, works. Wifi works. Networking works. Plug and Play works.
- Just like the ad says, the Mac works out of the box. When I turned on the iMac for the first time, I ran through the initial set-up. Once Leopard was running, I started Garage Band and mixed a podcast.
- The Mac costs more. You definitely can’t go to Walmart and get one for $400. But, if you want to spend a week removing all of the software that is subsidizing the cost of that machine, go right ahead. If you want to compare a Mac to a PC based on price, then at least look at comparable equipment from Dell, HP or Lenovo.
- Anything you create on your PC you can open and edit on your Mac.
- The Mac is easier to use for most tasks. Some things that you can do on Windows easily, however, aren’t as easy on the Mac.
- The Mac will run Windows. You can install Windows directly so you can boot into Windows like you do now or you can install it virtually so it runs like a program on your desktop.
You have probably heard this a million times already, but if you are thinking about a new computer for home, you should take a few minutes to research the Mac. You can get them at BestBuy now, so you don’t have to be intimidated by the Apple Store snobs.
Surveys. Such a pain sometimes, but sometimes they do what you hope they would do; get someones attention.
On Customer Service
More and more I’m surprised by the level of service, or at least perceived service, that I have been getting. For example, last month I posted to Twitter a problem I was having with Acorn. That night I received an email from Gus and he got me sorted out right away. That is an awesome use of Twitter!
Recently I made a purchase at MacMall for the 4gb memory upgrade for the iMac. I know, I know. But they are local and I was hopeful that I wouldn’t have to wait too long for the memory to arrive and I was trying to save a few bucks on shipping. Ordering was simple and the memory was a good price, so I was happy.
Until the next day.
Apparently, when you order anything from MacMall, you are automatically put into their SpamBot 5000 email list. I say this because over the course of 9 days I received 9 emails from them. That’s correct, an average of an email per day, some of those were doubled up.
Besides that, they sent me 2 kits. Not 2 chips, 2 4GB memory kits. Idiots.
Then I got a survey. Sweet! In which I proceeded to skewer them on the email issue.
About a week later my phone rings and it’s a CS rep from MacMall calling about the survey. He double checked to make sure my name was removed from the email list and will be following up on the extra RAM. I was impressed.
I doubt I will get a call back from Apple after taking the “you bought a new mac” survey, but it’s worth a shot. I went a little easier on them, but still left a comment about the overall price, lack of USB ports and/or a memory card reader on these machines.
I’m not saying I will order from MacMall again by any means. However, after what has happened, I won’t give them a bad review if someone asks. And that’s all it took. Just a little paying attention by someone and a little follow-up. Sometimes it does pay to complain.
And today, I have a new Mac.
Yes, there is a new Mac on my desk
Yes, I bought a new iMac, the upper end 20″, and it’s a fine machine.
I know I have been complaining about Macs, mine in particular. But I have a feeling that those issues are because it’s a first gen MacBook and it is terribly underpowered for what I’ve been trying to do with it. I also think it might have a few port issues.
I even went so far as to price out a Dell system. Turns out the costs was about the same as this (granted for more machine), but I would have been stuck with Vista until Windows 7 comes out sometime in ‘10 (or so I’m hearing). And I have software for the mac that I own. Quite a bit too. I really didn’t feel like going through all of that again on the windows side.
If you haven’t had the chance to see a new iMac up close, it is really nice. The screen is very bright and crisp. While not HD, watching a DVD movie on it is completely acceptable. Even the sound from the built-in speakers isn’t horrible, on par with television speakers, maybe a little better.
I’m almost completely moved in and have already done a few things on it to break it in. So far, I can’t really tell how much faster than the MacBook it is, but I do know it feels faster.
Here are some thoughts.
Pro
- The screen is outstanding
- The config right out of the box is usable (2GB RAM, 320GB hard drive)
- I got an upgrade coupon for iLife ‘09 so it will only cost me $10 when it comes out.
- Whisper quiet. No, it’s quieter than that. Makes almost no noise
- New Apple Keyboard in the box
- It has 3 USB ports. Nice to have the extra.
- It drives my 20″ display no sweat
Con
- The screen is very shiny and refects pretty much everything. Worse than the gloss screen on the MacBook. It’s slightly distracting.
- New Mighty Mouse in the Box. I actually tried to use it. What a horrible little device that is.
- It seems to run pretty hot. I’ve read about this and it doesn’t cause any problems that I am aware of
- It only has 3 USB Ports. In the day where PC’s have as many as 10 on board USB ports (plus a card reader), this is really unacceptable.
I probably won’t do a full review, but I will say that even with those minor issues, it’s a great machine and I’m glad I bought it.
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