19 posts tagged “mobile”
- Motorola C131
- Motorola V180
- Nokia 6800
- Nokia 3650
- Blackberry 7210
- T-Mobile Sidekick 2 (aka Danger Hiptop 2)
- Motorola i415
- Sony Ericsson Z520a
- Nokia N93
- Nokia E62
- Motorola i855
- Sony Ericsson W580i
- Nokia N82 (Titanium)
- Motorola V3x
- Nokia E90
- Nokia N82 (Black)
- Nokia E71 (White)
- Nokia E71 (Black)
- Nokia E66
- Nokia N85
- Nokia N96
- Nokia N95 8GB
Look at these pictures for a moment. There's two pictures of just the N82 alone, then two pictures with other phones around. (The stacked photo has the N95 8GB for comparison) Ntoice a few things... the phone's longer than the Sony Ericsson K850i, and what would seem to be about 4mm thinner than the Nokia N95 8GB, a fairly thick phone (but not anywhere as large as the N93). But what's the deal with that? The N82 is nearly identical to the N95-3 (the thinner, non-8GB model), with the exception of a xenon flash and larger battery (it's a candybar, so they can fit it after all).
So what's the rest of the space being used for, I wonder? Is an N82 with massive internal storage around the corner which will have the same physical dimensions around the corner? Or did the designers decide that a slightly larger phone is better due to better ergonomics (my approach to cell phones for quite a while). Not that it makes a difference, but it is something to think about.
Found a whole bunch of these on my computer, and in my obsessive state of mind trying to free as much hard-drive space as possible (I've only got 51GB available out of 120GB total), decided I should delete these. After I burn them to DVD. After I upload them here.
So here we go. They're all from the Summer. All are shot on my N93. It's kinda of sad that the videos recorded on the N93 are more enjoyable to watch than the ones recorded on my Kodak Z812 IS... probably because the Kodak records terrible audio which can't be made up for by HD-Resolution video.
And just because I remembered to look it up... Here's the results for the AutoCross Novice Class:
Andrew Kuzma:
Run 1: 91.934 (w/ 11 penalties)
Run 2: 70.486 (w/ 1 penalty)
Run 3: 76.318 (w/ 4 penalties)
Run 4: 71.890 (w/ 2 penalties)
Best Time: 58.362
Christopher Kuzma:
Run 1: 104.302 (w/ 10 penalties)
Run 2: 67.527 (w/ 0 penalties)
Run 3: 65.874 (w/ 0 penalties)
Run 4: 65.217 (w/ 0 penalties)
Best Time: 54.000
Those are pretty good considering the guy who introduced me to that particular competition, a guy with a 2002 Z06 Corvette, got a best time of 55.944! I'm pleased... and I beat my Dad, too!
I cannot even begin to describe my excitement at getting a Nokia N82! Finally, my UX will feature instant-on, GPS, gaming, and superior multimedia capabilities. Or it will, after I change it to the N82.
On another note, I may have figured out how to get a Nokia N95 8GB to try. Because I feel that no review has yet taken the viewpoint I have, which is that the N82 bests the N95 in most categories, especially in the area of usability in a car.
So, with a bit of luck, I'll be granted a trial N95, which I can pit against the N82 in my own tests.
Now that I have gotten the big base review out of the way, I can now focus on my day-to-day experiences with the device.
First, I want to note a potential revision to my previous comments about the keyboard. I cut my nails last night, and my typing experience has greatly improved. The keys, while still only marginally raised, have a more detectable tactility to them. I can feel them click. I seem to have a much higher WPM count, and I actually enjoy the experience now.
I would like to complain about the location of the power switch, though. While I applaud Sony for fitting everything necessary for use nearly exclusively on the front of the device, I find that I occasionally toggle the switch with the palm of my hand while holding the shift key with my left thumb and reaching for a key on the right side of the device with my left.
The obvious cure, I feel, would be to remap the “+”/”=“ key as a multiple keystroke somewhere else and change that physical button into another shift key. Maybe I’ll do that, if I can remember what key I remap that key to. And also if I can get over having an unmarked shift key.
This post is a bit unusual from normal, for reasons unknown to you. I am typing this up on Microsoft Works while sitting in the library. Then, once home this evening, I’ll copy and waste this into a blog post. That’ll take more time than it would have if I had just posted this via iTouch (Create an email, save to outbox, automatically sends when I walk inside my house). But the typing experience on the UX is much better I would argue.
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I am looking forward to next year, independent of which school I decide to attend. I look forward to meals on my terms, and being able to work with little of the family distractions I currently get now. I look forward to being able to do what drives me when I want to do it. Still being able to connect with my peers is important, and I hope to motivate them to choose personal technologies which will allow this to happen just as often, if not more frequently, than here at home.
I’m talking about laptops. Desktops are big, bulky, and impractical. I consider them to be test-beds for the technology that eventually winds up in laptops anyway. Apple computers are all the rage, and I have to say that I now believe the software, in terms of the user experience, is far more advanced on an Apple. That being said… now that I own the top-of-the-line MacBook Pro, I’m attracted to the complexity and diversity of Windows machines.
Mostly Sony laptops, though. The TZ series, while bested from it’s lead in the ultra portable segment by the MacBook Air, is more desirable to me. Loaded with a full feature set, it’s no slouch as my brief tinkering with it in a SonyStyle store proved. I found the keyboard, while smaller than the MacBook Air’s highly touted full-size keyboard, to be just as usable as my MBP’s slightly smaller one.
What makes the Sony Vaio TZ so attractive is it’s elimination of unnecessary weight and size. The MacBook Air’s super-thin design came at a rather steep price in order to squeeze in that big display and full-size keyboard: It’s wide. Too wide. Apple easily could have squeezed stereo speakers into it. The LCD has too big of a border for my liking- only excusable by the thinness of the whole computer.
Where the TZ wins is by wearing a Bond-like Tuxedo for exterior design. The Apple, on the other hand, is like the Greek fascination for the human body itself- in the nude. Think about that for a minute. The TZ is handsome, small, and looks the part. The Air is clean and minimalist. And that reflects the somewhat weak internal components. The TZ looks ready to do business- whatever that business may be, because it never fails a mission.
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I now sit waiting for an interview at Hollister. Time to go, don’t want to be marked down!
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Oddly enough… I have yet to post this. It is now Thursday, and I first started this post on Tuesday, two days ago. Well, I guess that it’s just the way this is going- the non automatic functioning of this posting method over my iPod is going to take longer.
Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about e-Ink displays, and more importantly, eBook readers. I probably sound like an odd-ball for saying this, but my one big gripe with physical books is their fragility and imposing size. I consider myself to be a proficient reader however I much prefer the ability to save the space that a book would consume and instead fill it with a smaller more functional gadget.
Now I probably seem like I’m just justifying my keen interest in picking up an eBook reader. I won’t refute that, because that is quite nearly precisely what I have in mind. I would love it if this UX had a dual-mode display which would retain it’s backlit LCD mode for computing as well as an e-Ink mode which consumes next to no power. That would create the ultimate portable computing device, in my mind.
Speaking of revisions to the UX, while looking over the back of the device I noticed what I though could be revised in order to slim the device. The WWAN antenna could be chopped out- let’s face it, EDGE is slow anyway (I know this and I don’t even subscribe to a mobile data service of any kind). Then reduce the battery size slightly, and chop off that ¼ of an inch in thickness lost by those two reductions. Remove the SIM card cover, because that’s no longer necessary, and move the USB port there so it becomes more flush with the device rather than extruding/
Back to my eBook reader- I’m leaving for Greece on the 15th. I’ll be bringing the UX without a doubt, and all that remains to be seen is whether or not I bring my MBP. Probably not. An eBook reader of my own is out of the question for then, as I will not have enough money to purchase it and I’m sure my dad would not pay for something he can’t quite justify spending money on- especially for me, the one who uses the internet for reading and hasn’t set down to actually read a book for over a year.
That being said, I might check out an eBook reader from the library to take with me on my travels. It’s an old dinosaur- a black and white LCD screen and probably uses NiMH batteries instead of the now industry standard Lithium batteries. But it has an excellent backlight: a pure, slightly off-white glow that is neither too bright or too dark and bathes the screen in uniform shine.
They haven’t updated those for a long time, I believe, and so the book selection will be poor. Also, the device itself is larger than the UX and it’s possible that the battery will be shot. Still, technology inspires me to do things. My iPod +Nike made me run, and that trend was stopped only when my sister said she was going to buy my iPod. Since she hasn’t done that it’s time to take it back and get some exercise.
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I wonder what the next big breakthrough in display technology will be. Rollable, full color backlit displays? Translucent flat panels which allow not only visually appealing computer monitors but also multipurpose building components. What’s next? I want to know so I can find the company pursuing this path and invest in them.
What about computers? Are UMPC’s and sub notebooks the end of the laptop era and the beginning of a new dual-computer system where docking one’s traveling computer becomes standard evening procedure? I would like to think so. I need a desktop… but it needs to look great first. I think, more importantly, I need a more functional phone, what I have now is beginning to wear on me. It’s outlived my expectations, and surprised me with it’s various functions, but it still is a bit dry in comparison to my beloved Nokia N93 of last year.
Let’s begin plans for which gadgets I hope to acquire and share my opinions on. The HP UMPC, really a sub-notebook with UMPC-spec hardware (minus touch screen) has a design which would quite nicely compliment my MBP. At the same time, it’s larger than my UX, and would cost more than a much more speedy and still refreshingly designed full-scale laptop. I think I need to get that one out of my system. Unless it sells for $400- and I’d snap one up in a heartbeat.
There’s the eBook obsession I have. Amazon Kindle versus Sony’s Reader. Costs are the same, but Amazon’s has more features (at the loss of an MP3 player) and Sony’s is super thin and much better designed (and has the MP3 player I’d probably never use). It’s a big toss-up, because I want to have extra features like wireless downloads and Google Maps but also value design quite highly.
I’m headed off to college next year, and know that even though the phone I have now is pretty good, it’s terrible camera requires me to bring my rather large but excellent standalone camera. That means, to be truly portable, I need a better phone. A Nokia N82 would fit the bill exactly, but it’s as pricey as a laptop. That makes it a difficult purchase to make. Maybe I’ll wait for a revised design so it is a bit more manly.
At Fossil I saw a great watch- an automatic, big-faced piece of masculine steel. Chinese movement, which is a disappointment, but at $115 it’s a steal for the amount of design work put into it.
For a desktop computer, I’d like one of the all-in-one PC offerings from HP or Sony. Apple’s iMac is a great contender, but I’ll get a better screen from a PC manufacturer for the same price as the lowest-spec iMac. Sorry Apple.
Review Date: 21FEB2008-3MAR2008
Introduction:
One of the smallest computers in the world, the Sony Vaio UX is truly a marvel to behold. Running a full version of Windows Vista Business and capable of the full Windows Aero theme, there are truly no areas in which this computer lacks any capabilities that a full computer might feature.
Considered to be a UMPC, the Sony Vaio UX belongs to a family of portable computers that are designed to hold the middle ground between a PDA and a laptop computer. This makes the target audience of the Sony Vaio UX hard to determine. One might argue that a UMPC is more of a business device, enabling a professional to take a device smaller than their laptop that has far more capabilities than their laptop.
The Vaio UX, I would argue, is aimed more at the gadget connoisseur and always-connected individual. This is because of it’s dual-cameras, WSVGA screen, and cellular connectivity. Its design is more flamboyant than a business -oriented device. Then again, there has never been a Sony notebook computer that has been business oriented- especially compared to IBM, whose trademark black laptops with corners that haven’t been smoothed out.
I therefore see myself as the perfect reviewer of such a device. As a soon-to-be college student, I am more forgiving to technology’s flaws unlike the generation of gadget lovers before me. Always searching for the very latest and best, I’ve always been acquiring new electronics. At one point I used to focus my obsession on technology in no particular direction. But as I see the field gaining ground, I’ve become much more interested in the portable world.
With devices such as the iPhone, ultra-mobile laptops, and other always-connected devices being released everyday; does the Sony Vaio UX stand a chance? I’ll be pitting the device against every gadget I’ve ever owned, from the do-everything Nokia N93, to my recently purchased Apple iPod Touch. The UX will be accompanying me as I travel to and from school for the extent of this review, and anywhere else I might travel.
Unboxing:
The Sony Vaio UX arrives in a rather exciting cardboard box. That might sound rather sarcastic, but I really do mean it. It reminded me of opening up a brand new television- and endless amount of entertainment lie within, all one has to do is setup whatever might be found within all of the cardboard. The black and blue on the side of the box looks quite professional, and it left quite an impression on me. It doesn’t blare out what’s inside, but it’s conservative decoration seems quite sleek.
Included with the Sony Vaio UX is a nice carrying pouch. It can be put on one’s belt but I would advise against that. It’s just barely too large to pull off being barely noticeable (instead it becomes quite noticeable). It’ll also attract a lot of attention- not necessarily as a target for theft, but as a target for mocking.
This box included a bunch of essential goodies that I’m glad Sony decided to include. The required AC adapter could have been boring, but instead Sony decided to spruce it up by putting a glowing LED onto the end of the charging jack. This looks great at night, and really helps the UX look upscale. The transformer on the AC adapter is also rather small, which I think is quite convenient for travel.
Found also in this box is the battery. It’s rather large- when compared to the Vaio UX. It’s a significant part of the device’s size, actually. But on it’s own, it’s rather small, and light too. No LED charge indicator lights built into it, but at such a small size, it would really have been too much to ask. If you’re someone who plans to purchase multiple batteries and constantly swap all day long, then the charge status lights might have been an added plus.
The VGA-Out dongle is rather big. Granted, it does more than VGA-Out (it also has a component-plug Video-Out), but at a little larger than 50% of the size of the battery, the size is still worth mentioning.
Sony was kind enough to include two extra pointer-stick caps, which I can tell you will need replacing every few months if you like to keep yours clean (they tend to accumulate lint). The new Vaio UX models have a different pointer stick cap, where the “material” is replaced by a machined texture. It’s hard to describe this without feeling it.
The UX ships with a very nice cradle. It features A/V Out, three USB ports (to add to the UX’s built-in one), Firewire, Ethernet, VGA-Out, and AC plugs. It also looks quite good, too. It comes in two parts, the clear plastic resting plate and the base. They quickly and easily pop together, and can pop apart again with a little effort. If I had one request of Sony, it’d be to add some LEDs into the base so that the plastic plate glows. It’d just add another level of class to the dock.
Lastly, the unit itself. The UX is encased in a box that features something of an exoskeleton. Pull that open, and slide the device out of its foam sleeve and you’re left with a breathtaking device.
Sony Vaio UX Main Unit:
Now that we’ve opened up everything, it’s time to jump right into the device itself. I was very impressed with the build quality and finish of the device. The sliding mechanism worked flawlessly, and all of the buttons had a solid click to them.
Except the keyboard. The keys were rather difficult in that they had very little tactile feedback, were quite flush with the face of the plastic under the screen, and had very little travel. Also, there is only one shift key on the device- on the left side. Because of how wide the device is, this made for many uncomfortable typing situations that eventually are overcome with time.
A quick handling of the device will locate all of the key features. The front-facing camera and it’s bigger brother hidden behind the screen, are quick to locate. The fingerprint scanner is prominently displayed up front. The swiveling “popsicle stick” antenna on the back. The MemoryStick Duo slot and the camera capture button next to it. The Wireless power toggle switch. Enough gawking over the device, it’s time to turn it on. I slid in the battery, put the UX in it’s cradle with only the AC adapter attached, and slid the power switch.
General Usage:
Turning on the Vaio UX is something of a magical experience. It doesn’t matter if it’s the first time after opening it or a year from now. It’s right after little power indicator glows a fierce green to notify you of what was to come that you realize you’re holding an entire computer in your hands. Not a super smartphone, or a computer barely capable of running with it’s own highly limited hardware, but a full blown computer. The first time I turned the device on was like a dream- a reality I never saw coming. I never thought that I could possibly have one of these in my possession. Never.
The Vaio UX turns on kind of sluggishly. But then again, what do you expect from a PC? As a fairly recent advocator of Macs, I can tell you that my MacBook Pro smokes the UX. And if you want to use the nifty biometric security… then you have to give the UX extra time to boot up that program in the background.
But, let’s be honest. This is a micro computer. If I had been after a speed demon I’d have pursued an Apple Mac Pro. But I value portability over speed, and so this is what I decided I wanted to review. Turning on from Standby, the UX returns to a usable Vista state in about the same amount of time that VMWare Fusion boots up Windows XP Pro in emulation mode. That’s quick. I mean, let’s face it- if you’re going to be using a full-scale computer program, you at least have enough time set aside already.
Surprises are aplenty on the UX, which fully supports the Windows Aero theme. Really nice and crisp display, which has great color representation. The colors are more vibrant and rich than my MacBook Pro- something which might be attributed to the UX’s glossy screen- but nevertheless quite surprising.
Looking Forward:
From this point on, the point of this website will be to review the UX in an everyday manner. Sure, there will be days where nothing will be posted, or at least nothing related to the UX. That’s because this is the blog of a gadget obsessed student. Next year I will be bringing the Vaio UX, my MacBook Pro, iPod Touch, PSP, and new cell phone, whatever it might be, with me to college. You can tell something about me by that list- I like portable devices. I’ve been using them for nearly my entire life. And I believe that if anyone is fit to give this device a real-world review, I’d be one of the must-haves.
Here's the deal. I'm in high school. So I get to see all types of personalities interacting with each other in a rather small area. Wealthy and poor, popular and socially challenged, I get to observe them all. So when I say something involving high schools, I'm pretty sure that I have a good idea about what's going on. At least for the next half a year.
I see text messaging occurring all around me. Students text messaging in class is something I see everyday. Gossip which literally travels around the entire school in minutes is something I'm not surprised by. Actually, I take that back. I am surprised. And here's why.
My parents got me a cell phone. Something I'm very happy to have. I have a rather nice handset, which I choose myself, and have owned even better handsets in the past made by the likes of RIM and Nokia. I phased myself off of those to instead focus my spending money towards more value-retaining options.
What I do not have on my phone, is text messaging. I used to have it, but because of an obsession a girl had with my two years ago I racked up an $80 bill for just my phone alone- which is supposed to only total $10 per month (I'm on a family plan). It has now been completely shut off- that means I can't send OR receive. Nothing goes in or out. Ever. (Except bizarre ones I get when I travel abroad or the occasional AT&T text message).
You've probably heard about, or even feared back in the day, where a bad rumor could circulate just as quick as an unclogged toilet can flush. Suddenly everybody knows what's going on, and everybody has an inside joke. Those who weren't in the loop were suddenly even farther out of the loop. It's a vicious cycle.
Text messaging has actually enabled this to happen. It's like a social networking site- you don't have to specifically be friends with a person to talk to them. Inhibitions are much less. It's easy. It's quick. And everybody does it.
Except a few. Like myself. We learn things the old-fashioned way- either by a phone call (and we're talking voice call), or word of mouth in a face-to-face conversation. That's not to say I'm low-tech. On the contrary, I carry two computers with me to school everyday in addition to an iPod and cell phone. That's not to say I'm a geek- rather, I have hip and cool electronics. An Apple MacBook Pro plus a newly acquired UMPC. I pull out the MacBook Pro in environments where I won't stand out too much, and use the UMPC all the other times. People either conclude that the UMPC is a gaming device or a big cell phone when they first see it, so it usually blends in pretty well.
The basic point is that text messaging is soon going to be more widespread than voice calls. Even my dad, who used to hate his cell phone to the point where he wouldn't answer it if he wasn't in a chipper mood, and never used to want me to have it, text messages himself now. Using one of my old phones, too. Kind of annoying for me, but considering he only text messages his coworkers, my sister, and my grandma, I can understand that he's not being distracted. Unlike me, who would probably give in to the social networking aspect of SMS messages.
Review:
Sony Vaio UX
VGN-380N
Introduction
The Sony Vaio UX line of portable computers
was one of the first UMPCs ever released. It officially wasn't even
a UMPC at the time. UMPCs were known as the Origami Project at the time.
The Sony Vaio could very well be called the defiming model of the UMPC
category of computers which was to follow later.
The Origami Project was unveiled to the
world one day a couple of years ago. All the devices portrayed were
super-light, durable, and portable. Keep in mind all were concepts,
but even still, they all appeared to be highly functional. The operating
system on these was like a stripped down yet super-capable Windows.
How? While the GUI was highly simplified, it was also quite desirable.
It looked good even though it lacked advanced functions.
The original Sony Vaio UX was released
slightly before, if I remember correctly. It had Windows XP, and was
quite cool. It was a full featured computer, but for some reason I never
associated it with an Origami device. And it's probably because it was
a computer with full functionality- not a stripped down device.
Soon after the Origami project had been
rolled out, devices by various manufacturers began coming out. They
were failures, all had poor battery life, atrocious performance, and
bad interfaces. Meanwhile, the UX evolved with the times, getting updated
specs. Eventually UMPCs broke out of the Origami type devices. "To
hell with it," was basically what manufacturers said. The Origami
interface wasn't up to date. Devices with low power CPUs and small batteries
still had to deal with components designed for higher power usages.
Trying to keep prices low didn't help either. Hard-drives were still
the norm. So the various manufacturers went the way of the Vaio UX,
deciding that if consumers wanted an Origami type device, they'd need
to pay extra for it because right now they did not have the capabilities
to serve it at such a low price like the Origami project promised.
Specs were upped, and prices too. Strangely,
the UX remained. It had updated specs from it's original iteration,
this was true, but it's form was the same. Origami came to be just an
application installable on top of Windows which would speed up basic
functions.
The latest and greatest Sony Vaio UC
to date is the Premium model. Equipped with an SSD, it's now much more
durable than the original, and quicker too. This model being reviewed
is the Premium model's slower brother. Sort of. Same specs, but with
a hard drive versus the Premium's SSD. It's possibly a better option
than the Premium because it has more storage space and costs less. Either
way, it's what I bought and what I'm reviewing here.
Design
All of these pictures were taken with my Kodak Z812 IS camera with it's brand-new rechargeable battery, just for your information. These pictures do quite well at capturing the beauty of this device. The glossy screen is also quite noticeable in this picture. And it is noticeable. In real life. But I manage to ignore it and it disappears (at least in my head it does). If you're in a room with lots of bright lights, you may run into a few problems with this screen.
Features
One of the greatest things about the Sony Vaio UX is it's cameras. While I don't particularly see them as being anywhere near good enough to replace even my cell phone's camera, they do get the job done in a fun way. What do I mean by that? Think of Photobooth for Mac OS X. It's not a great camera, and the picture's aren't necessary aren't that good. But they are goofy, spur of the moment, and fun. Same here.
The Vaio UX has two cameras as I keep mentioning. One in the front for standard video calls, which has a maximum resolution of QVGA I believe. The rear one has a 1.3mp sensor, and in order to use it the screen must be slid up.
Like I just mentioned, the UX has wireless features.
A feature I found by accident but am happy to have found is the drop sensor. A bunch of accelerometers detect when the device is being moved at a rate hazardous for the hard-drive to be functioning at and then disengage it. This can be anything from just a bump to free-fall. I found it out by picking it up rather quickly off of the desk. While I had wanted to purchase the VGN-UX390N with it's SSD drive to ensure durability, the extra cost wasn't worth it to me. Now that I know this has the drop detect, it at least gives me a piece of mind.
Uses
I'm still developing this section. So far, I've managed to install Skype, Windows Live Messenger, Pidgin, SecondLife and Live for Speed on this device. It's quite capable. SecondLife is a bit of an odd one, though. It runs quite stable and consistent, but it likes to deliver lower frame rates which is annoying. Other than that, it's perfect.
Right now I'm planning on installing Microsoft Office, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Photoshop. Those are programs I use a lot while on the go, and would be very useful to have.
---[ Review Continued 1/29/08 ]---
I took the Vaio on a trip to Phoenix, AZ this past weekend. I was visiting the ASU College of Design (since I've been accepted into their Industrial Design program already). It was quite nice to be able to leave my MacBook Pro back at home in Portland and pack just my small sling bag with which to carry my camera and the Vaio in. Rather than lugging a big backpack which would probably be quite empty most of the time (or filled with stuff I never used), I was able to travel on the bare minimals- which ended up being more than adequate.
Imagine this... being on a college campus where WiFi is available at any given point. While roaming around with my camera, I can then settle down, whip out the Vaio, and upload photos to the internet while making a blog post. I could even do this while walking if the need so hit me. The small size of this computer is a real plus because I can send SMS and IM messages while walking from place to place (I don't subscribe to SMS or Data cellular services of any kind). Quite a productivity/social enhancer, right?
Turns out, there were a couple of glaring issues with this. Most were unavoidable, at least at this point in time. First, I don't have an ASU ID card yet (if I ever get one... still have to decide where I want to attend next year). Second, the built-in memory card slot on the Vaio is a MemoryStick slot. This is annoyingly different from my camera's SD memory card. I did not pack my memory card reader (which would have been awkward to use) and I don't have one of those fold-in-half SD/USB style memory cards. So I was out of luck to using the UMPC to view photos I had taken on a larger screen.
To add in, the Vaio suddenly stopped doing it's "instant-on" from standby mode of turning on. Instead, it would go into "super-standby" as I like to call it... basically, it's shutdown, but it's RAM state prior to shutting off is recorded to the hard-drive rather than completely shutdown. So it boots up much faster than if it were cold-starting, but slower than the instant-on that it used to do. Maybe this was because I put it on the battery saver mode?
I got to give my Apple iPod Touch a bit more of a whirl on this trip. Because it has instant-on like a PDA, it was easy to check in random places for WiFi connectivity. Then, if I found an open hotspot, I would quickly check my email on the iPod, then guage how much time I had before I had to move on. If I was going to be there for a while, I'd settle down and pull out the Vaio, instant messaging a little bit.
TO BE CONTINUED....
