Early Christmas Gifts

Finally got around to buying stuff for ourselves... My husband had been wanting to get the new iPhone but it was always sold out. After a week of trying we got a reservation online and picked it up from the Apple store.

And I got an iPad 2 (yey!) with a pink Smart Cover too :) Ngayon, 'di na kami nagpapansinan coz we're both busy downloading apps like crazy...

One thing that peeves me though is the iPad has a crappy camera, you would think they'd give it a decent one for the price you're paying AND it doesn't support flash :( Should I have gotten a Samsung Galaxy tab instead? Or a Blackberry Playbook? Aaahhh!

Electronic Haul

We have been frequenting our local electronic retailer to get some stuff for my husband's family. Got a Dell Inspiron laptop and Nikon Coolpix camera for my sis-in-law (who loves anything pink), a Nikon L120 for dad-in-law and Sony Cyber-shot for bro-in-law.

Hope they like our early Christmas gifts, in addition to the three balikbayan boxes that we already sent a while back.

My Material Christmas Wish List

Only 4 items on my list of things I want. Note the word want. I have a longer list of things I need that money cannot buy but they're way too personal so I'm not gonna post them here. Anyway, here it goes (I doubt I'll get the first 3 but it's called a WISH list for a reason :))...

I've been wanting an ebook reader for quite some time now, it's the perfect geek present. For sure I will not be getting this anytime soon as it is already sold out till next year. I'll just have to borrow my dad's new kindle while I wait...

I'm so in love with this special edition HP Mini designed by Tord Boontje because it's so pretty! And you know I am a sucker when it comes to pretty things, combine that with anything tech related - I won't be able to resist it! I really liked the Vivienne Tam edition of the mini too but until now, I still don't know if I need a netbook for sure. My need is clouded by my want...

One of my friends has this and it's really cool and handy for capturing all the precious moments in life that only come once... The minimalist in me really likes the fact that there are no long cords to connect this to a computer :)

And because everybody else needs one, you will never go wrong with an iTunes gift card! It is pretty much a no-brainer and greatly appreciated :)

As I said, these are all non-essential, I could totally do without. Hopefully, we all remember that Jesus is the Reason for the Season :) Happy Christmas to all!

Burning A Hole In My Pocket

I was so excited last month for the launch of Canon's latest PowerShot - the G11. I've had it a little over a week already but due to time and work constraints I haven't had the chance to really play with it until now. Isn't she a beauty?

I have to say I'm seriously impressed by what it can do. I was debating whether to get a Leica or this one, I'm really glad I got this (but I will forever want a Leica, go figure).

Now I won't have to take this monster around all the time. It's really annoying and attracts too much attention.

I also got a couple of shoes since my last shoe post. I got these slouchy suede boots from Jessica Simpson to replace my old tan boots (the one that got pooped on by a pigeon in Venice). Anyway, I like the buckle detail and it looks pretty sturdy - good for schlepping around or running errands.
This shoe is by another singer - Carlos Santana. What's up with singers designing shoes nowadays? Anyway, I really love them on my feet, they're awesome.
Another view of this sexy platform. Don't you love the crazy leopard print and the asymmetry? I think it's a nice combo.
And last, I got practical brown suede pumps. They look great with jeans as well as more dressy outfits.
I don't have a lot of shoes, contrary to what some of you may think, I know some girls who have way, way more than I have. I get rid of a pair whenever I get a new one so I keep my collection of less than 50 pairs manageable :)

A Clean Slate

Just finished upgrading to Snow Leopard. There's really not much difference from the previous Mac OS. I also cleaned house - backed up important stuff, deleted old, stale files, and reformatted my computer which took me a good few hours. Here's a screenshot of my Macbook now...

I also installed iLife '09 and iWork '09 as well as Office 2008. Whew! I still need to put back some of my documents, pictures and music as my computer is virtually empty, I don't even have my own desktop background yet :)

Neil's New Phone

A few days ago my brother got a 32GB iPhone 3GS. It's been almost 2 months since it was released and I have to say, it's an amazing little gadget - Apple has certainly improved on the previous model ten-fold!

I'm not gonna go into details about the specs or features of this phone - you can find out all about it on the Apple website... I just want to point out how incredibly sleek and sexy this phone is...
However, I'm not about to become an iPhone convert, I'm more of a Blackberry person for lots of reasons... but you can't doubt that the iPhone has and will continue to have a cult following just because it's, well, cool. :)

Bluetooth Headset "Discovery"

I've been eyeing this bluetooth headset for quite some time, maybe 6 months before I finally got it. I've been using the Plantronics Discovery 925 for a little over a month now and I must say I am very happy with it.

Design-wise, it is cool in every way from the hairpin-like shape to the built-in charger case. It also comes in a bunch of other colors - gold, cerise, white and purple. I got the black one because it matched with my cellphone.

I found the device extremely easy to pair with my phone and very effortless to use, one touch is all it takes to answer calls. It is also extremely light-weight, the longest time I've had it on nonstop was 6 hours and it was still comfortable. It doesn't slide or fall off your ear either :)

Sound-wise, it delivers pretty well that the person I talk to on the other end don't even know that I'm using a bluetooth headset because it's that clear! Well, provided you're not too far away from your cellphone :)
Best of all, the charge lasts for days and days since the headset is housed with a charger so I just throw the whole thing in my bag and I'm set.

4GB RAM Upgrade For Dummies

For the past couple of months or so I've noticed that my MacBook (that I got in November 2007) seemed to be a little sluggish. Honestly, I was getting a little annoyed constantly seeing the spinning beach ball of death whenever I had to open iPhoto (with almost 25,000 pictures) or edit movies so I decided to upgrade my memory which was only 1GB.

For a minor surgery like this you will need:

- compatible RAM (I bought 2 sticks with 2GB each)

- a screwdriver

- 10 minutes of your time

- and of course your computer

1.) Disconnect your computer from the power supply and shut down it down.

2.) Turn it upside-down and take out the battery.

3.) Ground yourself by touching a piece of metal before handling any of the computer parts to protect it from static electricity.

4.) Unscrew the metal covering of the RAM slots (this varies by what model of computer you have).

5.) When the RAM sockets are exposed, press the latches outward to dislodge the old memory...
6.) Take those out and put the new ones in. Make sure to only pinch the edges of the module and not touch the face or any circuitry...
7.) Reassemble your laptop, power it up and check if the new memory is recognized...
And it is! Mission accomplished :)