As you might remember, about a month ago I got a new cell phone. I was very excited about my new LG enV2 because it is a texting phone and I outfitted it with a nice pink plaid sticker to show it my love, however, the honey moon is officially over. For the past few weeks my phone has been turning off and restarting randomly for no reason. At first, I thought I was accidentally turning it off, but eventually I realised it was the phone. So, I took it back to Verizon today to see what they could do and apparently this was a known software error and they promptly issued me a brand new cell phone. So, this is phone number 2 in two months. Let’s hope this one lasts…
Happy Birthday Steve!
Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday dear Steve Jobs,
Happy Birthday to You!
…….and many more!
Blogging like a Pro.
I just wanted to write a quick post to let everyone know I am currently blogging from a Macbook Pro. Not one of the new models but the previous generation with the latch screen. I am at a family friend’s home helping them configure their wireless printer to their network and I got bored so I am just saying a quick hello!
Wish this were real.
When I saw this mock cover for the New Yorker I was instantly filled with excitment thinking it was a real cover! Sadly, it is just a figment of one very talented imagination, but I thought I would share it with all my fellow mac lovers!
{Image via here}
Speck See Thru Case for iPod Nano 3g.
As you probably can tell by my previous post, this is my video review for the other iPod case I received from Speck. It too is a SeeThru case, very similar to the previous, however, it has a few differences, some I like and some I dislike. First of all, I like how this case for the nano has an optional belt clip back. At first, I thought it was a holster case, but once I tried the case out on the video I realized it was a separate back, which is really cool! Downside, however, is that the belt clip is rather scary to me because its not a spring loaded clip, but a solid piece of plastic that I fear could break off easily. Other than that the case was pretty straight forward. Its a sleek design and everything you could ask for in a iPod nano case.
Speck See Thru Case for iPod Nano 3g. from Miss Trenchcoat on Vimeo.
Price: $24.95 on sale for $6.24
{Click here for more info}
Speck See Thru Case for Ipod Touch.
A few weeks ago the nice people at Sandbox Strategies, a tech PR firm representing Speck products, sent me a few Speck ipod cases to try out and review. So, after trying them out for a bit I am finally getting around to editing the videos and posting them for the world to see. This video is a review of the See Thru case for the 1st generation ipod touch. It was a two pack of hard shell cases, one pink, one aqua blue and a hard plastic screen cover. As you will see in the video, I actually really like this case, despite my bad history with hard shell cases because this one is slim, difficult to assemble and remove, and gives a high level of protection.
Speck See Thru Case for IPod Touch from Miss Trenchcoat on Vimeo.
Two-Pack Price: $29.95 on sale for $7.49
{Click here for more info}
Stimulus Macbook.
Most of the time, I don’t think people are excited by the prospect of tax season. It is stressful to have to file taxes and wonder if you owe or how much you will get back, and in this terrible economy everything is so up in the air when it comes to finance and stimulus packages with the federal government that it is a mess to think about. Although most find the idea of tax time daunting, I actually like to get it over with as soon as possible, and in fact, I am ready to file my taxes tomorrow! Why am I so excited, you are probably wondering? Well, I can’t wait to get my tax refund, because thanks to some stimulus credits and the fact that I always make sure I overpay my taxes throughout the year, I am getting a nice chunk of change this go around, and I fully intend to use my return to purchase a new Macbook!
Talk about stimulating the economy, I am not going to be sticking that check into my savings, I like my money right where I can see it– on my lap with a fine aluminum finish and a full glass display! My only dilemma at this point is how soon I should make my purchase. You see, I had always intended to get myself a new mac once my current Macbook’s Apple Care protection ended in June, because it is not worth it to have to pay out of pocket for a repair on this mac, especially with the track record this machine has had with the optical drive needing yearly replacement. But of course I want a shiny new Macbook asap!
There are some advantages I see to waiting until the summer to get a new Macbook, however. WWDC is usually the first or second week of June, and it would be fair to expect some spec bumps and price drops on the Macbooks, not to mention the elusive snow leopard might be out by then. So, I am torn! I will have the money to get my new Macbook in a few weeks, but I might want to hold off on the purchase to see if Apple releases any new updates on the Macbook line by the summer. So far this year there has been nothing major other than the new iLife and iWork and I would hate to buy a new mac and then a few weeks later hear that Apple uped the RAM or hard drive size on the standard models. What do you think I should do? I want some advice/feedback on what to do because I would hate to rush into such an important purchase!
I’m a Mac… are you?
I found this model of the “Mac” persona a while ago and just ran across it recently, so I figured I should post it here and see what sort of reaction I get. Unsurprisingly, I fall into every single one of those categories. So, tell me, are you a true Mac? http://vimeo.com/2666842
{You may need to click on the image to enlarge it in a new window in order to read the text– sorry about that!}
Having a Little Fun.
I asked Santa for a lot of tech presents this past Christmas, and of course, Santa can’t deliver everything, so after the holidays I took myself out to get the few final gifts I didn’t receive. One of which was the Wacom Bamboo Fun Tablet. As you can see from the images, I bought the small white model* which is 8.4″ W x 7.3″ D x 0.3″ H. As you can see below, I made a little video of the unboxing, and now after using it for over a month, I think it is time for me to write a little review of my experience with it.
For those of you who have never used a tablet before, I will be honest, it was a very confusing process to relearn how to navigate the computer screen with a pen instead of a mouse, but after I got the hang of it (like 30 mins to an hour), everything was quicker and more seamless than using a mouse or touchpad. The tablet also made photo editing and graphic design a snap! I love how seamlessly the tablet works with photoshop and how easy it is for me to sketch and create artwork on my computer. As someone who enjoys creating artwork, the Bamboo Fun really gave me an outlet to create my work on the computer by mimicking the natural pressures of pen strokes and allowing me the freedom to change textures and mediums as I work. I love how I can put my artwork on the computer, drawing and erasing as I would normally with charcoal or pencil with very little difficulty. This is really a plug and play sort of a device.
All you have to do is install a simple driver for the tablet, set your preferences and viola, you are set to go! It even comes with a mouse that works over the active area of the tablet so that you can switch between pen and mouse, but trust me, if you begin using the pen, you won’t want to go back to a mouse. Even if you don’t use this device to create artwork or edit photos you can use it simply to surf the internet or create handwritten notes on the computer. Honestly, this device has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me and my Mac. I use it for everything, personalizing documents, drawing, editing, surfing the web and just general computer navigation. If you are someone who wants to get more out of their time spent on the computer, I would definitely suggest one of these Wacom Bamboo Fun Tablets!
{* The Bamboo Fun comes in 2 sizes, small and medium, and four colors, white, silver, black, and blue.}
Post Christmas Presents!
You have to love to after Christmas blowout sales that all the major stores do each year after the holidays have come and gone! Most years you don’t find too much left in stock, but of course with the depression and all this year the stores were pretty well stocked! Well, in the wake of this, I picked up a much needed Belkin Travel USB Hub that adds 4 ports (well, really 3 because you have to plug the hub into your computer which of course deducts the use of one of your computer’s ports) to your peripheral rich tech life! This little round disk will run you $14.99, but I picked it up for $7 in a Target right after Christmas, and thank goodness I did because it is really coming in handy! With all the tech toys I received for Christmas this year I was lacking the USB power to handle them all simultaneously, but the problem is officially solved! As you can see, I bought the ‘plum’ color, but it also comes in ‘black’ or ‘red.’ I enjoy the design of this hub a lot, since I usually find USB hubs to be rather plain or bulky looking, but this colorful round disk almost looks like a funky paperweight on my desk and is also the perfect compact size and weight to throw into my bag on the go. It is called a travel hub because, as you might be able to notice in the image above, the chord wraps around the disk when not in use, a feature I like because it keeps my wires untangled in my bag! Love this little guy!