artiss.blog

Category: Life

Random thoughts on life

  • Samsung Galaxy S2, O2 and Ice Cream Sandwich

    Yesterday, Samsung made available Android 4 (Ice Cream Sandwich, or ICS) available to the UK networks for the Galaxy S2 (my phone of choice).

    The idea is that the individual networks can now make any changes to it that they need to, test them and then release the final package.

    My SG2, on O2, came with no such network branding. So, I contacted O2 yesterday to ask them when ICS would be made available.

    Hi David, we’re just making sure it will provide the best possible customer experience. Watch this space!

    What does that mean? Well, the delay suggests they are branding it. Is this “the best possible customer experience”? If this is the case it shows that O2 (and I’m sure the other networks are no different) are completely out of touch with people actually want. I could be wrong – I hope I’m wrong. But if they’re not, why the delay?

    I’ll await the results with interest.

    Meantime, Samsung have released some documents for UK SG2 owners covering the changes…

    Update: 3 have released ICS for GS2 today. Meanwhile, O2 have started giving more away to queries on Twitter…

    it will be rolling out early April time

    That’s right… April.

    Update: For those who missed it, O2 made ICS available last week. However, I didn’t receive it. After some digging, it turns out the lack of existing branding on my phone is because it’s unlocked (which I confirmed by putting a Vodafone SIM into it and finding it worked!) At this point it become more complex. For reasons not understood, Samsung are not release ICS for un-locked phones until late April. Yes, that’s the version that was provided to the networks the other week and requires no further changes. Why it’s not yet available is a good question.

  • Are the iPad 3 cracks already appearing?

    Not literally mind you.

    Users of the iPad 3 (sorry, New iPad) are reporting a much reduced battery life than expected and problems with over-heating.

    The latter doesn’t cause any problems other than a very warm or hot section of the back case.

    As you know, the battery life on the New iPad is supposed to be the same as that on the iPad 2. However, users are complaining that it drains quicker, particularly when using them intensively – such as playing games. Of course this is probably due to these drawing more use from the new chipset.

    With regard to the heating problem some users are reporting that proper draining and recharging seems to resolve this. It would appear that many new owners, keen to try it out, didn’t perform the requested initial charge and the battery is not working efficiently.

    In all cases it’s too early to tell exactly what the problem (or cure) is and there’s no official word from Apple.

    Oh, and to the person complaining that it takes longer to charge the New iPad – it’s a bigger battery, what did you expect?

  • How Technology Has Helped Online Bingo Sites

    One of the many advancements that online bingo sites monitor very closely in order to incorporate it to their sites in order to benefit their customers is that of technology. In recent times, webcams have become extremely popular as some online bingo rooms use them so their customers can share that winning feeling with the rest of their bingo buddies from around the world. The use of webcams has become somewhat of the theme at Bingo Cams, which rewards their customers that share their progressive jackpot wins with extra cash prizes. The site has used technology in order to reach a niche market that no other bingo site has tried to reach before, giving them the chance to not only offer a no deposit bingo bonus as a great way to attract new customers, but use technology as an added incentive to lure computer savvy customers.

    Most bingo sites nowadays also use the likes of Facebook, Twitter and other social engines to tap into a market that previously had nothing to do with the online bingo scene. By employing the likes of Facebook and Twitter, new bingo sites have managed to inform customers of what they can gain when they join their sites, whether that is a form of free bingo bonus offers, promotions or other attractive competitions and tournaments. Online bingo websites have also started to offer unique cash giveaways to their customers that ‘Like’ them on Facebook or ‘Follow’ them on Twitter.

    With so many technological advancements coming thick and fast, it’s only a matter of time before playing bingo online is taken to the next level.

  • Will my next phone be a Nokia running Windows?

    At work, as a cost saving measure, they’re replacing the many Blackberry handsets with Nokia’s. More specifically Nokia Lumia 800′, running Windows Phone 7.

    Naturally, I’ve had a chance to try one out and get feedback from those that have them. And, believe it or not, I may just choose for my next phone (or, by that time, whatever the latest Nokia / Windows Phone combination is available).

    The phone itself is gorgeous – matt back with a lovely weight, impressive screen and excellent camera. Windows Phone 7, I have to say, is also impressive. It’s responsive and easy to use. It makes Android, in particular, look very sluggish and old fashioned.

    Yet, reviews have been neutral. Yes, it has an average battery life (what’s new with modern smartphones?) and there is nothing particularly stand out either. But you could equally say the same about the other popular smartphones – indeed those that the same reviews rave on about. I’d say the Lumia 800 is about as stand out as the Galaxy Nexus or iPhone 4S. All impressive with minor flaws but an excellent overall experience.

    Because WP7 is new the number of apps is small. Thankfully you can view their Marketplace online, so you can get a taster of what you can and can’t get up front. Google apps, for instance, are severely lacking.

    But, here’s the rub – look at Carphone Warehouse and you can get the Lumia 800 from £21.50 a month. The Galaxy S2 will cost £26 and iPhone 4S will set you back £36, in comparison. That, to me, makes the Nokia look a bargain. Come back in 16 months and see what I decide!

  • Games on the PlayStation Vita and where Sony went wrong

    Games on the PlayStation Vita and where Sony went wrong

    I’ve now had my Vita for over a week and have had a chance to buy some games – both from the PlayStation Store and physical versions from a shop. During the course of this I’ve been frustrated at the lack of thought that appears to have gone into this.

    Let’s start with an obvious question – why is Sony still selling physical copies of games? Why aren’t they all downloadable (as they would be if you were using a Smartphone – their competition these days)?

    Well, the reason I’ve bought physical copies is for 3 reasons…

    1. The price of the Sony Vita memory cards means that it becomes expensive to download them and store them yourselves
    2. You can re-sell physical copies, unlike downloads
    3. The online copies are more expensive, even though they involve no physical shops or packaging

    Of course, a physical copy means that each game card I have to take with me – having it built into the Vista would have been a real boon, and one of the advantages that smartphone gamers have.

    The re-sell issue is not a great one and if the 3rd issue was resolved it wouldn’t be too great a problem. Why are the online versions more expensive?

    There’s probably still a need for physical copies but why not make them more expensive than the online equivalents – that will move people more towards those unless they really have a need for a physical version. It will also mean that the re-sell value will come into it less. Or how about this for a barn-storming idea – trade-ins for downloaded games? Get bored of the game, delete it and get a portion of your money back.

    Lastly, let’s tackle that stupid problem with the memory cards. Why have Sony done it? Proprietary, expensive memory cards. With Sony profits dwindling and a history of customers hating this kind of thing, why would they do this? They’ve already stopped doing this on their phones, for instance – first they started using Micro SD cards for storage and then swapped to Micro USB for connection. Now the Vista comes out with it’s own proprietary port and a brand new card format. It’s stupid. Sony are stupid.

    Sony are aware that they need to target more than just the hardcore gamer with this machine but I think they’ve missed another trick. A further frustration I’ve found with the games is a complete lack of instructions – the physical copies don’t come with a paper manual but each game, wherever it was sourced, comes with an electronic one. However, I’ve yet to find out that isn’t 99% T&Cs and safety guide followed by 1% of story. Assistance with the game is nill. Examples include Wipeout 2048 and Super Stardust Delta. The latter was purchased from the store, as many games are exclusive to that – I bought one that comes with extra features. However, the download was small and the game didn’t install. It would seem – I think – that it simply unlocks the game and extras in the store – they have to be downloaded separately. Not that this was documented anywhere, this is just from my own investigation.

    The game menu, as well as an electronic manual, also has an internet link – maybe I’ve been unlucky but every time I’ve tried one, rather than send me to a useful web page run by the game publishers, it’s instead performed a Google search for the name of the game – not very useful!

    So, I downloaded the Stardust package which installed and added the game. I then downloaded the “extras” package which downloaded and… nothing. Is it supposed to. I start the game… do I have the extras that I paid extra for? No idea.

    Why is the “Online” button on the front screen of the game greyed out? Is that normal? All of this I have no idea about because the manual has no detail on this at all. A quick Google and it appears the same is being discussed in forums – nobody appears to know.

    Why is this Sony’s fault? Because they control game distribution and packaging and their name is splashed all over the start of every game. They have the ability to set a minimum standard – a standard that, at the moment, is severely lacking.