A new beginning

Today marks a new chapter of my life. After 6 years, I lost a huge part of my life yesterday. Perhaps its my own undoing that I allowed it to happen, perhaps its just the strength of time, perhaps it is just meant to be. It is futile for me to resist change and inevitable that I can only see its aftermath as I try to pass through every single day.

It is sad to have nothing, but just as sad to have everything... and no one to share it with...

My take on the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc

SE has really come a long way since their early days of venture into the Android realm. Their initial efforts were half hearted, half baked and mediocre at best. The SE Xperia X10 was lacking in more areas then some. Personally, being an ex-SE user, I was utterly disappointed in SE with what they had to offer. However, SE did mentioned that they will learn from their experience with the X10 and promised to improve on their Android offerings in 2011. Many were sceptical, even myself.

2011 came, and boy did SE improved. Their latest range of Android phones spot the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, standard 1GHz processors and stylish form. Coupled with their ironclad position in the gaming realm, they assimilated the PlayStation name with their Android devices. The direct offspring, being the PlayStation Suite & of course the SE Xperia Play. And to top it off with a cherry on top, they promised to update their old X10 to Gingerbread 2.3 as well. Kudos to them.

Now, this year's SE flagship Android phone will be none other than the SE Xperia Arc. With super stylish design and unbelievable slimness, the Arc is indeed a magnificent piece of engineering. Well, they do say Sony is essential run by engineers, don’t they? Like any SE Android phone, the arc will come with the custom UI known as Timescape. SE has done many improvements with Timescape since its first induction on the X10. Timescape now is very much faster, smoother, prettier and useful. And of course, the Arc packs a 8 megapixel camera. This camera is able to take very beautiful stills with good auto white balance as well as superior low light shots. This is due to its Exmor R sensor which uses back-illuminated CMOS technology. The dedicated camera shutter button is also a welcomed addition.

Now while these all sounds very good. I shall now touch a little on my pet peeves. Firstly, the device is not running on a dual core processor. Ushering 2011 is a gamut of Android devices from multiple manufacturers utilising dual core processors to power their devices. Some even use up to 1.5Ghz dual core processors. While 1Ghz single core is the standard and norm nowadays, dual core is the way into the future. 1Ghz belongs more to the last generation of Android phones, the Gen 1 Androids since the introduction of the Nexus One. Once the Gen 2 phones are on the shelves, the Arc might find itself in a power struggle.

Secondly, the lack of a front facing camera might proof to be its Achilles’ heel once the Google I/O in May is over. There are very strong hints in the tablet based Android Honeycomb 3.0 that Google is adding video functionality to their mobile apps. Google Talk is definitely one candidate to receive this feature. Lacking the front facing camera might result in the Arc losing a portion of users who would like to enjoy the true Google experience.

Since we are on the topic on Google Experience, I shall now touch on my last point. The Xperia line of phones can hardly be considered as Android devices with pure Google experience. Of course, the UI is already customised. And the most glaring physical mutation would be the lack of a Search button. All true Android devices have 4 physical buttons. The Xperia line only has 3. While this is hardly a cause for concern for average users, it is the timeliness of updates from Google that all users should be worried about.

SE has yet to proof that they will deliver all updates from Google to their device users in a timely manner. An acceptable timeframe would be no more than 3 months delay. SE used to be notorious in that area. It took them one whole year to update their X10 from 1.6 Donut to 2.1 Eclair while the rest of the world is already using 2.2 Froyo. Having said all that, the Arc is still a very desirable device. I am sure its camera will impress both users and sceptics. Its light weight, slim and stylish design will win over the ladies. Its Bravia technology display will make media consumption an awesome experience. For a two year SGD$30 monthly contract and an upfront payment of SGD$400, I think it should garner substantial interest and users.

The SE Xperia Arc is available locally in two colours, Midnight blue and Misty silver. It is also available in Japan in Sakura pink.

Tips for Android Beginners

There are 6 general actions which can be used on a typical Android device.

You firstly have the 4 command buttons at the bottom of the screen.

They are (in random order), "back", "menu", "home", "search".

The back button always brings you back a previous action. Much like the back button of a internet browser.

The menu button brings up a context menu. This menu shows additional options and/or settings depending on the context. ie. the options and/or settings shown differs in different scenarios.

The home button always brings your to your main CENTRE home screen (you have screens both left and right unless you are using Samsung Android devices). If you hold down on home, your 8 most recently used apps will appear for fast app switching. The home screen of the Android is fully customizable from setting wallpapers to widgets to icons. The rest of your apps will be within the app drawer. Unlike the iPhone, your apps will NOT all appear at the home screen. Only those which you choose to be shown are there.

The search button is also a context search button which basically let you search anything under the sun. From your apps, to music, to contacts, to the internet, etc. If you hold down on the search button, you will activate the voice command.

The second last action will be our usual swiping and pinching action.

The last action, and most important action, will be the long press. Sometimes when you cannot get your desired action using the menu button, you can press and hold your finger on the screen, on the target, to get your desired action to appear.
eg. Long press on a link in the browser, you will get loads of option to either copy, open in new tab, save, etc etc.
Or long press on an empty area on your homescreen to get options to change your wallpaper etc etc.
Or long press on an icon to move or delete it.

Just remember, if you wanna try to do something and you cant seem to do it, LONG PRESS! You most probably will get it :)

Try them out! Explore! And love your Android :)

Why the Nexus One?

Everyone likes to ask me this question whenever they see me whipping out my N1: "What's the difference between this and the iPhone?", "What's so great about this phone?"

I would like to answer them this: "With the announcement of Windows Phone 7 Series, the mobile picture is now officially a three-way dance: Apple, Google, and Microsoft. The same people who dominate desktop computing. Everybody else is screwed."

"I can keep raving about the hardware specs about the N1... about how it crushes the iPhone specs hands down" But to me, specs are never stagnant. Maybe 4 months down the road, Apple will announce the new iPhone 4G which will spot equal or even better spec.

To buy a product, you are not so much buying it for its specs. You are buying the company's philosophy.

I value freedom and openness. The freedom to thinker with my phone. The openness of being able to use it how I want to use it. Pop an mp3 into the sdcard and you can play it straight away. Freedom of over the air updates. Thats why the Google N1 is for me.

If you want something that is packaged nicely for you out of the box, something that is user-friendly and very easy to use; simply because you cannot use it any other way except for how its company wants you to use it... get the iPhone. They market content inorder to sell hardware. You are buying it for the iTunes, the apps, etc. Give a child or elderly an iPhone and they can use it straight out of the box within few minutes.

If you want something that is familiar brand amongst the masses. If you value instant connectivity. If you want all the information to be pushed to you and available to you at a single glance all in device without having to log into other individual services. Then Microsoft's WP7S's "Hub" concept is the way to go for you. I would have considered this a refreshing change and would definitely get it if Android did not exist.

Things I will miss after leaving US.

1. Shopping experience
2. Cheap gadgets
3. Sparse land
4. Weather and seasons
5. The many places to visit
6. The driving experience
7. Fast dedicated internet connection
8. TV channels
9. Delicious fast food

Thoughts on the Singapore General Elections 2011

This is my first and probably last blog post since arriving here at California. I am glad to be given the opportunity to visit the US and being able to explore its many interesting places during the weekends.

However, there is one thing that makes me a little regretful coming here.

The Singapore General Elections 2011.

Being here in California means that I will not be able to place my vote unless I travel to DC, SFO or NYC.

This year's GE is going to be pretty intense. No one will know how the final results will turn out to be. Out of 87 seats, 81 were contested. The highest number of seats being contested since a long long time.

I have always been thinking about the plight of true-pink Singaporeans and how the current governement runs the country. Their policies and laws put in place which affects the lives of all Singaporeans, especially the middle to low income group. With this coming elections, my feelings and thoughts intensifies...

There are people who feels that the PAP, being so high up in their ivory tower, with their very obess pay cheques, are very much out of touch with what is happening on the ground. They cannot be blamed for this. When one is affluent enough, one will never ever be able to understand what the poor is going through. How their lives are being lived. It is simply incomprehensible to the wealthy.

I remember I once watched the movie Money No Enough 2. In the show, the 3 brothers were forced to transfer their sick mother, who took very good care of them when they were young, from a very well equipped private hospital to a public government hospital. During that scene, one of my friends, who happens to be from a very well to do family, exclaimed: "The sons are so unfilial! I would never do that if I were them!" That statement struck a cord in me. I realised that this friend of mine, who had everything given to him by his parents, will never be able to understand what it means to be poor. What it means to earn a living. What it means to own his own car. What it means to support a family. The rich will simply not understand as, with money, these day to day problems simply is non existent to them.

I simply said: "Just ask yourself this. Will you be able to give the kind of life your parents gave you now once they retire? Just by your own capability?"

If the PAP can get a surgery done for a mere SGD$8 due to their benefits and subsidies, how can they ever ever understand what the average Singaporean has to go through and pay for the cost of a surgery. Naturally, to them, hospital bills are very affordable! Cheaper than 3 packets of chicken rice!

If hospital bills are really that cheap, there will not be a saying: "You can die in Singapore. But you cannot afford to be sick." I guess that is why our Ah Gong said "You die your business!"

Everyone knows that public housing prices are skyrocketing. Young couples are taking loans of up to 30 years! In the end, they are left with nothing in their CPF accounts. While it is true that they may get a roof over their head which can bring them profit if they were to sell it in years to come, but that would mean they will have to sleep in the streets!

To buy another house after selling will also mean they have to pay a higher price for that new house! Everyone knows, if you sell high, you buy high.

Most Singaporeans will never go bankrupt. But they will be forever in debt despite working their whole life.

There are some who said, if you don't like it, you can choose to leave the country. This statement is, again, made by ignorant fools who are rich enough to not know what the poor is going through. The poor do not have no choices! They cannot CHOOSE to leave like you can. They do not have the means nor the money to relocate themselves to another country. The only way is to become a refugee...

While Singapore is painted as a City of Gold, there are loads of middle to lower income families who are true-pink Singaporeans. They are Singaporeans like you and me. Yet they are left behind as Singapore races forwards to get the highest GDP growth. It is this group of people that we should pay more attention to... they make up a substantial percentile of our population. We should not leave them behind.

These lower income families are, in general, not as well educated as us. Their lives are very much affected by the relentless influx of foreigners. Their wages are affected and worst, they may even lost their jobs as they are being out competed by younger foreigners who are asking for a very much lower pay. Nowadays, trains are packed to the brim unlike just 5 years ago. I feel that I am in a foreign country. The local to foreigners ratio is 2 to 3, almost like Dubai. And no! I do not count permanent residents as locals.

As I always say, there should not be discrimination, but there should be distinction. I do not discriminate foreigners. Foreign workers are needed for the physical development of the nation. As Singaporeans are getting more and more educated, not much are willing to take up manual and physical occupations. But there needs to be a clear and very define distinction between locals, permanent residents and foreigners. Executive jobs should be given to Singaporeans first. Scholarships should be used to nurture rooted Singaporeans first!

Having said that, I am very against foreigners who refuse to integrate with our society and instead, demand us to accommodate to their whims and way of doing things. The PAP is spending our taxpayers money to help these foreigners integrate into our society when they should be the one who should be spending the extra effort to do so. Moreover, why should we be paying for them to try to get them to integrate into our society when almost all of them are not interested in staying rooted in Singapore?

I am going to buy a flat soon. I choose to buy a resale flat in AMK despite its high cost and lack of grants for buying from the free market. Why? Because when i go home from work everyday, I want to really go Home. A home with local Singaporeans. AMK, unlike the new towns, still has a relatively high local to foreigner ratio. I do not want to go home to a place where everywhere i go, i see foreigners. I know my decision will be expensive. That is why i rather choose an older flat within AMK.

Many fear to vote for the opposition for they are afraid that by making the wrong choice, it will be the end of Singapore. What is the worst that could happen to Singapore in 5 years? Will there by repercussions which will affect us far longer into the future? If we focus less on growth of GDP, will we fall behind our neighbors? Behind by 5 years or maybe more? Are we willing to not be the number one in our region?

Can we afford not to be number one?

These are questions we have to bare in mind before we cast our sacred votes.

No matter what, there needs to be changes. The new government will have to find a balance amongst this network of issues.