Book Reviews and Money Saving Tips

I just read an article on Zd net about the new hp tablet.  Since I am dictating this blog I have not yet figured out  how to put long internet addresses in verbally.  If you google z d net .com and mobile gadgeteer. You should be able to find the post "Should we now expect to pay 500 dollars to be tablet beta testers."  Sadly the author has concluded the HP tablet is not a competitor to the apple ipad 2.  Check out his blog post it is very informative.  This post was made by dictating to my droid x.  Perhaps sometime in the future it will actually be quicker than typing.

DroidX Continued The bloom is still on the rose. I love this phone. A note for those of you who travel, when arriving at my vacation destination in Florida I had 3G service for a few days and then it stopped. The Verizon tech I spoke to had me *228 and update the programming. My 3G returned. He suggested that when ever you travel to a destination beyond your home coverage that you do a *228 to insure that your phone finds the local towers. That may be common knowledge but it wasn’t to me so if your 3G suddenly disappears while you are traveling, you may want to try the reprogramming rather than wait on hold for 24 minutes to get a tech.

It is actually more like several weeks but what the heck I needed a title. I mentioned lack of documentation for the Droid X. I went to the downloaded manual to find out how to add customized ringtones. The manual had butkus, zip, zero on how to add ringtones. I surfed the web and discovered that if I downloaded music I could then hold the icon down for that song and it would ask me if I wanted to use it for a ringtone. Why that isn’t documented is beyond me. Of course my son then proceeded to show me an app that allowed me to do ringtones even easier. No download time needed. Arrgghh, I’m supposed to be the family techie. The apps I have tested and use so far are: Bubble Burst Free which is an apparent clone of my old favorite Bubble Breaker. FBReader which is successfully reading the epub format books I have copied from my computer to the phone. Formatting works and reading is seamless. Adobe Reader which I have used so far on the downloaded manual for the Droid X. How F...

I finally bit the bullet and got a smart phone. I decided on the Droid X due to its 8 megapixel camera, RAM capability and 4.3” screen. I looked at getting it for $119.00 through Amazon but when they wanted my Social Security number I decided to go elsewhere. I ended up at a local wireless store that was a Verizon affiliate. I could have gotten BOGO but I had not one that wanted the second phone with it’s required data plan implementation. I recommend going to a local provider based on service. You may think it is just a phone, why would I need support? First the documentation that comes with the phone is a fold out overview, no details. I did find the manual on-line and downloaded it both to the phone and my computers. The manual is less than stellar. It appears to written for and by intellectually challenged folks. Second this isn’t just a phone, for all intents and purposes this is a full fledged computer. It has an Office app on it that successfully opens my Word and Exc...

So who cares what the newest smart phone may be? The cell phone owners that live in Verizon’s bogus green zone reception areas aren’t going to get any better reception with a smart phone than they do with their dumb phones. I’d love to have a smart phone and would be willing, albeit grudgingly, but willing to pony up the $30 per month data plan if, that’s IF I could get decent cell phone reception where I live. Some how the Verizon solution of installing a cellular repeater for a couple of hundred bucks so I get a signal where I live, seems to run contrary to their advertisements of their great cellular coverage. I’m far to ornery to spend that money on getting cellular service I’m already suppose to have from my carrier So I repeat myself, until Verizon truly has great coverage who cares what new smart phone is being released, sob, regardless of how much I might want one.   There is no  love so sour as the love that is unrequited.  Someday, someday as ...