Technology

The Nokia N95 Experiment

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OK, so the idea of me getting a Nokia N95 turned into a bad idea. As much as I think it, in this day and age I need a phone with easy text imput. That means a keyboard, or maybe a touch keyboard (aka iPhone). The concept of a blackberry pearl or even just T9 text input from a Nokia N95 just doesn't cut it. As much as the N95 was a great phone in every other way I need the ability to input data quickly.

And you guessed it, that means I returned my N95 last Friday. I am stuck with the limitations of my Nokia E61i until the iPhone 3g comes out. Hopefully that will be an improvement over the original. If that is a failure I can either try my luck with the Nokia E71, the 61i replacement, or wait a really long time for Palm to get their act together and come out with their new OS.

Until July 11, I will try and figure out how to keep managing my tasks on the E61i.

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My New Webcam

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Yesterday I got a brand new USB webcam I ordered. I know, I have an iMac with a camera, and my Macbook has one too, so why is this a big deal. It is because I use my Macbook as my main computer and when it is on my desk at work or at home it is plugged into a monitor and the lid is closed. That means using the built in iSight camera is not an option. I have wanted to buy a camera for a while but most recent USB camera's don't always support the Mac. I didn't want to deal with open source drivers. Thankfully Macally came out with a nice cheap USB webcam, the IceCam2.. It didn't need any drivers, and I was up and running with the camera in about 5 minutes. I placed a test call to my dad via Skype and it worked great. There is something wrong with his speakers because we always get static when doing a call, but the next time I am over there I will take a look at it.

I also got a laptop stand I can keep at work. One of the things I don't like about the Macbook is that when it gets hot the fan run's really loud and it is annoying. The stand should hopefully allow better airflow on the Macbook.

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Nokia N95, vs iPhone 3G

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Since I wrote my post about getting the Nokia N95, I thought of a few things that get me wanting a new iPhone, and some that make me think the N95 is a better option than the iPhone.

Features that my new Nokia N95 does now or last year when it came out that the iPhone will do in July are: GPS, 3G data speeds, Wifi, 8gigs of music or videos, & sync’s to my Mac seamlessly.

Cool features that the N95 does that the iPhone doesnt are things like built in internet radio, regular radio (via headset), 5mp camera, & basically any S60 application can be installed on it. Oh, yes Apple being able to write software without any restrictions is a good thing, no matter how crash proof you want to make the platform. There has to be a better middle ground than what Apple does.

To be fair the iPhone does the following things that will probably get me to switch when it comes out. It will have a keyboard (well touch keyboard still counts), awesome email client, & mobile me.

There are probably more features that fall into all three categories but that is a summary of what I care about.

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Phone vs PDA Phone

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Yesterday I broke down and did a sort of impulse buy. I have been eying some mobile phone alternative to what I have that is not an iPhone. The Nokia E61i is just too dam slow, and the lack of a good email client and task management has put me over the edge with tolerating it. I will admit the E61i is still a great phone, but for me there are things that I will put up with and things I won’t. My issue is that the next real contender for a phone for me is the new iPhone 3g that is not out yet. Even then I am not 100% convinced I will be happy with it due to some known limitations for me.

That all being said I broke down and went out and bought a Nokia N95-4. It has almost all the multi-media functions of the iPhone and more, but it is not a PDA. In the first day that became a problem for me, but I did have a back up plan. I broke out my old Treo 750 that I never got around to selling and set it up to use as just a PDA. I can also use bluetooth to use the N95 as a modem if i want to check mail or browse the web on the Treo. I know, a PDA and a phone. How 2001ish. So far it has worked for me. I don’t always need the PDA, but it is on my desk at work or in my bag when I need it. That and I actually have a nice fast phone that sounds good. I know I will probably ditch this setup by the time the iPhone 3g comes out and I get sucked into getting one, but this setup does work.

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Skype With Caller ID

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I have previously commented about how fantastic Skype was, as well as that its biggest limitation was that it didn’t provide caller ID information when making calls. Well Skype finally enabled outbound caller ID for US skype customers. If that wasn’t good enough, they went a step further and allow you to use the caller ID information from your mobile number instead of your Skype Out number. This is the perfect solution for me since I want my mobile # to be the only number I have to give out. All I needed to do was register my mobile with my account via an SMS message and now all outbound calls via skype come up as if it was from my mobile.

For me this feature may change how I use my communication tools. I might not need to pay for unlimited mobile phone service if I can make unlimited outbound calls from my skype phone for $3 a month, and people would only see my mobile number!

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The Waiting (For Updated Technology)

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After extensive pondering between what mobile phone I will continue to use I ended up with no clear decision. I got rid of the Centro, the Treo 680, & the Treo 750 is in a box ready to be sold. I am still using the Nokia E61i but recently I am not happy with it either. It went from being reliable to being very unreliable. I go to type stuff on the QWERTY keyboard and the keys that also can be the numeric keypad don’t work. Cycling through all the shift and alt functions don’t get them to work. A reboot is the only thing that works. Then there is the fact that I cannot always make calls after I get out of the subway or regain service. I get network busy even when I have 5 bars of signal. Incoming calls aren’t affected. In fact once I get an incoming call the phone works fine. Even after a reboot it doesn’t always work right. It is driving me crazy since I rely allot.

I am frustrated enough to want to replace the E61i with something, but I can’t just yet. I am waiting for the rumored new iPhones to come out in June. That and the very soon ability to buy and install programs onto the iPhone is my only hope for a stable smart phone. My problem is I am never good at waiting for new stuff to come out, but my goal is to hold out a bit more.

I am about to wipe the E61i and reload only the basic applications I use on it. SInce I went months without any real issues like this, logic tells me that something recent that I installed is causing the issues that I am having. I am not sure what, but it has to be something. I am going to wipe the phone this weekend and hope for the best. It is either that or throw it into a wall:)

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Skype With My Parents

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I got my dad a new computer back in January. When I did I also bought a web cam. The idea was to set him up with Skype so he can talk to me and my sister with the video chat. I thought it would be fun to have especially since Carrie and the kids (and Michael of course) are almost two hours away now. Well I tested the setup by myself when I had the computer at my place when setting it up, but never had my dad try it. I setup skype to auto start and configured everything so all he really needed to do was hit accept when an incoming call came from someone on his buddy list.

Last weekend I finally got around to giving him a test call. It worked almost flawlessly. He didn’t have the speakers setup right so audio was messed up in the beginning but then it worked for a little while. I then started hearing some nasty white noise, but the video was fine. I think the issue is on my end, but I need to test a connection out with my Macbook & iMac to be sure.

It was fun to do. I hope to actually use the setup. I wish more people I know actually have skype so I could utilize it more. Unfortunately I have lame friends who only primarily use AIM:(

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XP SP-3

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I am installing Windows XP SP-3 for the first time tonight. I am putting it on a Virtual Machine running on Fusion on my new iMac. Up until now I haven’t had the chance to give SP-3 a try, and since I have some free time on my hands I am going to tinker. Hopefully it wont blow anything up, but if it does who cares! It is a VM after all. If it does work, I should update the Sysprep image I have of a clean install of XP. You never know when you might need it.

The Harmony

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I am like most people (or at least people that I know). I have allot of remote controls needed to watch TV. At last count I had 6. I have wanted a universal remote for years, but for almost as long as I can remember there have been universal remotes that just haven’t done what they were supposed to do. I remember my teenage years at home and my dad had at least 3 “universal” remotes sitting along with the remotes for the TV, VCR, & Cable. None of them did everything they were supposed to. I have also had the same problem, so for years I gave up.

I had almost lost hope in technology solving this problem that it had created, until I read the reviews of the Harmony 1. I had read and heard great things about the Harmony remotes, but they were expensive and seemed difficult to teach the remote how to do stuff. Because of that I avoided them. Then I read about the Harmony 1, and I was impressed. Now granted it did seem that other of the more recent Harmony remotes by Logitech did the same thing, but 1 was the latest model that was in my price range. After reading CNET’s review and talking to a friend or two I went and shelled out the $250 for the remote. Yes you heard me right, it was $250 plus tax for a remote control. Let me tell you it is worth every penny!

I have what you would call a slightly more complicated entertainment system setup than most. I was skeptical that it could be programed easily enough for all the stuff I have. I can safely say now more than a week later that this remote works as advertised. It took me about 30-45 minutes to program in all my devices, and activities but after that it worked on the very first attempt to use my setup. My entertainment setup is complicated because I have a TV, Tivo HD, stereo receiver, DVD player, Apple TV, Xbox 360, and a HDMI switcher (KVM) to cycle between everything. That means the Harmony needs to know to switch the KVM to one channel, the receiver to another channel, use the receiver to change volume, use the Tivo to change channels and know all the special Tivo buttons just for me to watch some TV. It also needs to know what to do when i want to switch to the Apple TV to watch TV and listen to music, but like i said on the very first attempt the remote knew what to do. I was amazed. The only remote the Harmony needed a little extra assistance understanding was my Tivo remote. Everything else it knew how it functioned right away. The online database of devices was very thorough. It even knew my HDMI switcher model. I was impressed and still am. I am waiting for the day I come home from work and the Harmony just gives me a run down of what I missed on the TV that day!

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Personal Wiki

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Years ago Gus showed me a personal wiki software package. I think it was active words. I am not even sure if you would call that a wiki, but it was a personal organization program. At the time I wasn’t interested. Recently however I have wanted to have a place where I can put important or repetitive personal information in. I had been keeping notepad items on my smart phone for years, but when I last looked I had like 50+ notes. It was too much to manage in that system. After some searching my favorite productivity sites (Lifehacker, 43 Folders, etc.) I stumbled across VoodooPad for the Mac. I actually remember reading about it a while back but never used it. This week however I downloaded the free version and I already moved all my notepad items into it. I am about ready to buy the paid version to get the extra features. I like its functionality, and also the ability to export everything to XML, TXT, or HTML. With that option if I ever feel like leaving the program I am not locked into some proprietary format. I like that.

More opinions as I use the software.

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