This is just a fast review. Mother opened the Auvio yesterday, it being Christmas. The Auvio Bluetooth Portable Speaker uses a Mini USB port, not a Micro USB. It comes with a USB to Micro USB cable, but no charger. That is not so bad for me, as I have too many USB wall chargers. I guess that is one of the ways they save money.
The Auvio Bluetooth Portable Speaker is light, but that is because you get 6 hours of use instead of 10 hours with the JamBox, by virtue of the battery. But light has it's virtues- it is easier to carry around.
The sound was pleasant. Too small to be anywhere near outstanding. But, it was good. Where you place the Auvio can change the tonal quality of the sound output. I will play around with that aspect more.
This unit cost me $40 plus tax. That was a great deal for the sound quality and the volume output of this device. Can't say anything about the reliability of the Auvio, just too new. But as I test it out, I will post about it here.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Sunday, December 23, 2012
I been spending too much time at Radioshack
Well, Radioshack.com. Now, they are offering Virgin Mobile (USA) HTC One V for $49.99. Free shipping is available for orders over $50. I would buy a micro sd card. Not a bad deal, 5 MP camera with LED flash (I like to use as a flash light). Android 4.0.3 (Ice Cream Sandwich).
And I paid $99.99 for mines. I got ripped off. Well, not really. It is worth the money I paid.
HTC One V
And I paid $99.99 for mines. I got ripped off. Well, not really. It is worth the money I paid.
HTC One V
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Opps! I Did It Again
Bought another Auvio Portable Bluetooth Speakers as a present. Ordered from Radioshack.com and will have it sent to a friend. Radioshack.com offers free shipping for orders over $50, but the speaker was only $49.99. Shipping was $6.99. So, I also ordered a 8 GB micro sd card for $7.99, letting save the $6..99 on shipping, but increasing my total sales tax. I don't think it will arrive before Christmas, but then, I don't think he is getting me anything for Christmas anyway. I really do need better friends.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Free Free Free Free
In my last post, I mention that software for iOS devices are easy to find. Well, found a link for a DVD ripper and video converter. I have not downloaded this program yet, I may in a couple of days. These programs may say for iPhone or iPad, but they have other settings. But, I usually use an iPad setting, if I was making the video file for my BlackBerry PlayBook. It would then work on an iPad and the PlayBook.
Forgot to mention it is free. No support. No manuals. But, free. Links below. Takes you to a CNET article that explains how to download the program. Read it before downloading it. You do need to download and register the program. Read the article.
CNET
Forgot to mention it is free. No support. No manuals. But, free. Links below. Takes you to a CNET article that explains how to download the program. Read it before downloading it. You do need to download and register the program. Read the article.
CNET
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Rolling with Life
Been playing with iOS6, on my mother's iPad Mini, with Android 4.0.3 (Ice Cream Sandwich) on my HTC One V (which also has HTC Sense), and the BlackBerry PlayBook (which is supposed to be similar to RIM's BB10). Have not tried Windows Phone 7 or 8. Nor have I tried Android 4.1 or 4.2 (the two version of Jelly Bean).
My favorite OS has to be the BlackBerry PlayBook. I'm not rating the whole ecosystem, just the OS. I like the whole swiping thing. I like that 99.99% of the time, I don't need to use any physical button or rocker. To wake up the PlayBook. To adjust the volume.
Since I use the PlayBook to watch videos, I like that the native video player plays a lot of different video formats- wmv, avi, mkv, mp4 and the other m style formats (mov, m4v, etc). And with the app, Remote Media Player, I have a resume feature and a limited fast forward and reverse. Life is good.
iOS6 is alright. Like AirPrint, very easy to print from the iPad Mini. Like AirPlay. I love the iPod portion of iOS devices. I think it is the best media player. I know it plays a very restricted video container, and you need to use iTunes to put videos onto the iPod media player, but I enjoy using it to watch videos. Because Apple products are popular, videos and software are easy to find for them.
Android on my HTC seems like an OS from Frankenstein. Like it is a little of this, a little of that. I understand that with Android, I can tailor it towards the way I would like it. I can tinker to the way it fits me. But do I care? No. Do many people care? I don't know. I have seen other people's wallpapers and I find it makes the screen harder to decipher information. Playing videos on the HTC One V is been a crapshoot. I still have not found the right player. I keep reading on what is great about Android is that the media players can play anything, but I still have not found one.
Life goes on.
My favorite OS has to be the BlackBerry PlayBook. I'm not rating the whole ecosystem, just the OS. I like the whole swiping thing. I like that 99.99% of the time, I don't need to use any physical button or rocker. To wake up the PlayBook. To adjust the volume.
Since I use the PlayBook to watch videos, I like that the native video player plays a lot of different video formats- wmv, avi, mkv, mp4 and the other m style formats (mov, m4v, etc). And with the app, Remote Media Player, I have a resume feature and a limited fast forward and reverse. Life is good.
iOS6 is alright. Like AirPrint, very easy to print from the iPad Mini. Like AirPlay. I love the iPod portion of iOS devices. I think it is the best media player. I know it plays a very restricted video container, and you need to use iTunes to put videos onto the iPod media player, but I enjoy using it to watch videos. Because Apple products are popular, videos and software are easy to find for them.
Android on my HTC seems like an OS from Frankenstein. Like it is a little of this, a little of that. I understand that with Android, I can tailor it towards the way I would like it. I can tinker to the way it fits me. But do I care? No. Do many people care? I don't know. I have seen other people's wallpapers and I find it makes the screen harder to decipher information. Playing videos on the HTC One V is been a crapshoot. I still have not found the right player. I keep reading on what is great about Android is that the media players can play anything, but I still have not found one.
Life goes on.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Toys for Christmas
Almost Christmas, time to see what is on sale.
Radioshack.com has the Auvio Bluetooth Portable Speakers on sale again starting today, selling for $49.99. Free shipping on orders over $50!?!?! If you are an audiophile, you would not get this. But it is small, portable and from the store demo, puts out a decent sound. I have not tried the one I bought yet. It is for my mother for Christmas. Rated with a 6 hour battery life, the Jambox from Jambone will last 10 hours. But it cost more then double the price.
Because my BlackBerry PlayBook has no expanded memory, I got the Kingston Wi -Drive from Amazon. And now Amazon is selling the 32GB model for $49.99 and free shipping. Better yet the 64GB one goes for $89.99 with free shipping. These prices will last for at least one more day. For even more storage, Amazon has the Seagate GoFlex Satellite Hard Drive for $99.99 shipped. Like the Wi-Drive, it will make it's own wifi signal, but uses a 500GB spinning hard drive and you can't recharge it, because it doesn't have batteries.
Radioshack.com has the Auvio Bluetooth Portable Speakers on sale again starting today, selling for $49.99. Free shipping on orders over $50!?!?! If you are an audiophile, you would not get this. But it is small, portable and from the store demo, puts out a decent sound. I have not tried the one I bought yet. It is for my mother for Christmas. Rated with a 6 hour battery life, the Jambox from Jambone will last 10 hours. But it cost more then double the price.
Because my BlackBerry PlayBook has no expanded memory, I got the Kingston Wi -Drive from Amazon. And now Amazon is selling the 32GB model for $49.99 and free shipping. Better yet the 64GB one goes for $89.99 with free shipping. These prices will last for at least one more day. For even more storage, Amazon has the Seagate GoFlex Satellite Hard Drive for $99.99 shipped. Like the Wi-Drive, it will make it's own wifi signal, but uses a 500GB spinning hard drive and you can't recharge it, because it doesn't have batteries.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
No Frigging Apps
Yes, there is a dearth of apps for the PlayBook. And the defenders of the BlackBerry PlayBook will tell you that there is the browser. That you could use the browser for many of the things you would want. And really, you can. But not for everything. Because the browser uses wifi.
As the new owner of a Android phone, that is not used as a phone, and having the sometimes use of a new iOS device, I have now come to see apps are needed. I was looking at Voxer, a walkie talkie app, that is available for Android and iOS devices. But it could work in a browser, as Voxer uses wifi. But there are other apps that use bluetooth instead. But the browser doesn't have access to the bluetooth, so I think an app would be necessary to use bluetooth for things like chatting, texting or sending files.
I thought it would be good for my friend, who has no phone, and me to text while he is working. I course, I would need to be close to use bluetooth. But I have run into a roadblock- no app seems to work with an Android device and an iOS device. Of course, none work the PlayBook. Oh the horrors.
As the new owner of a Android phone, that is not used as a phone, and having the sometimes use of a new iOS device, I have now come to see apps are needed. I was looking at Voxer, a walkie talkie app, that is available for Android and iOS devices. But it could work in a browser, as Voxer uses wifi. But there are other apps that use bluetooth instead. But the browser doesn't have access to the bluetooth, so I think an app would be necessary to use bluetooth for things like chatting, texting or sending files.
I thought it would be good for my friend, who has no phone, and me to text while he is working. I course, I would need to be close to use bluetooth. But I have run into a roadblock- no app seems to work with an Android device and an iOS device. Of course, none work the PlayBook. Oh the horrors.
Using the Kingston Wi-Drive to Download
Really started using alot more. Mostly trying to figure out the best way of using it for a trip. I have streamed from the Wi-Drive to the PlayBook. It works fine, the Kingston does get warm. But you can't stream on a plane flight and stated battery life is only 4 hours. Can't say for sure how long battery life is, I have never tested mines. But I figured the best use would be to download the videos (or music) to the PlayBook.
To use the Wi-Dive on the PlayBook, you need to use the browser. Enter http://192.168.200.254/ into the browser, when you are connected to the Wi-Drive. It will stream any file that a PlayBook uses, but you can download that file. Using the PlayBook touch screen, touch and hold the file and up posted a menu and click "save link as". Downloading should begin. And it is pretty fast.
On the HTC One V, you can go to Google Play and download an app from Kingston, Wi-Drive. It will let you download from the app. I downloaded music to the One V. It was very simple.
In both devices , you do need to connect the wifi to the Wi-Drive's signal.
iOS devices also have an app in Apple's App Store. But that app will not download the files, I have read. I think, and I will try later, you could use a download manager to download the files. It would be like using the PlayBook, I would think. Use a browser. There are many download managers in the App Store.
Screen shot of PlayBook connected to Wi-Drive, trying to download a file.
To use the Wi-Dive on the PlayBook, you need to use the browser. Enter http://192.168.200.254/ into the browser, when you are connected to the Wi-Drive. It will stream any file that a PlayBook uses, but you can download that file. Using the PlayBook touch screen, touch and hold the file and up posted a menu and click "save link as". Downloading should begin. And it is pretty fast.
On the HTC One V, you can go to Google Play and download an app from Kingston, Wi-Drive. It will let you download from the app. I downloaded music to the One V. It was very simple.
In both devices , you do need to connect the wifi to the Wi-Drive's signal.
iOS devices also have an app in Apple's App Store. But that app will not download the files, I have read. I think, and I will try later, you could use a download manager to download the files. It would be like using the PlayBook, I would think. Use a browser. There are many download managers in the App Store.
Screen shot of PlayBook connected to Wi-Drive, trying to download a file.
FedEx came at 7:30pm
My mother's iPad Mini came in the other day. Apple promised December 11 as the delivery date, but Apple always promise things and they get there earlier. When it shipped, they promised it by no later then 4:30pm on December 5th. But it came December 4th at 7:30pm. I knew it would be there before the 5th, but 7:30pm? FedEx must be laid off people, because if they are running this late now, Christmas maybe even later for them.
Setting up the iPad Mini was a breeze. No need for an iTunes account now, as one can be made during setup, which I could do over WiFi. The Blackberry PlayBook was also very easy to setup over WiFi. I would always recommend having any device that you are setting up, to have it connected to a power source during the process. I have bricked a device before, because, I think, it had not fully downloaded everything it needed.
My first impressions of the ipad Mini is that it is light and fast, for the things my Mom will do with it. Easy to setup. In putting of telephone numbers was a pain, as I needed to redo the earlier ones to put country codes into the phone numbers (+1). FaceTime needed it. Colors seem nice. Only real fault at this time is, in portrait mode, the words can be fuzzy and not sharp. Battery life has been excellent.
Was it a good choice for my mother? Definitely yes. All of her grandchildren have an iOS device, with whom she can now FaceTime with. FaceTime has worked for her right after setup and in putting the phone numbers or email address, for the iPod Touches and iPads. It has a bigger screen for her to read with and play her games. Solitaire. But now she complains because she has not been winning alot.
Setting up the iPad Mini was a breeze. No need for an iTunes account now, as one can be made during setup, which I could do over WiFi. The Blackberry PlayBook was also very easy to setup over WiFi. I would always recommend having any device that you are setting up, to have it connected to a power source during the process. I have bricked a device before, because, I think, it had not fully downloaded everything it needed.
My first impressions of the ipad Mini is that it is light and fast, for the things my Mom will do with it. Easy to setup. In putting of telephone numbers was a pain, as I needed to redo the earlier ones to put country codes into the phone numbers (+1). FaceTime needed it. Colors seem nice. Only real fault at this time is, in portrait mode, the words can be fuzzy and not sharp. Battery life has been excellent.
Was it a good choice for my mother? Definitely yes. All of her grandchildren have an iOS device, with whom she can now FaceTime with. FaceTime has worked for her right after setup and in putting the phone numbers or email address, for the iPod Touches and iPads. It has a bigger screen for her to read with and play her games. Solitaire. But now she complains because she has not been winning alot.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
HTC One V and me
Been using the HTC One V for a week and I must say I like it. Part of it has to do with it not looking like a iPhone. It looks different, but it also seems solid. The home screen is not like iOS. Not sure what is HTC Sense and what is Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich. The clock/weather widget, I believe that is from HTC, is nice, though I do wish it was on the lock screen, not just the home screen.
The screen shot on the left is my home screen. The one on the right is the lock screen. I don't know why the screen shots are so fuzzy.
The screen shot on the left is my home screen. The one on the right is the lock screen. I don't know why the screen shots are so fuzzy.
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