Just came back from the launch of Intel Core i7 at Equinox, Swissotel The Stamford. This is the second time I have been to Equinox, the first time was attending OCBC Chinese New Year dinner with my mom.

My Badge

Equinox is located at the 70th floor of Swissotel The Stamford and you can expect the view to be fantastic.

Nice View Of The CBD

The place is pretty small, there were about 10 PCs setup with games running on the Core i7 and it doesn’t lag! Maybe because some of the gaming rig are using Nvidia SLI/ ATI CrossFire graphics card. There is also a demo by an Australian Overclocker which uses liquid nitrogen (he literally brought the whole tank of liquid nitrogen) to overclock the Core i7. He did not show us what clock speed is it running but rather the temperature of the CPU which is about 4deg;

I am very expressed by the speed of the processor, there is a demo between a Core 2 Quad and Core i7 processor base on 3D rendering and video encoding, and the results are impressive. I love the hyper-threading (HT) on the Core i7 which makes your OS recognize it as 8 cores instead of just 4, similar to the technology used in Pentium 4 half a decade ago.

Core i7 Specifications in CPU-Z

There are 3 flavors of the Core i7 available, Core i7-920 running at 2.66GHz, Core i7-940 running at 2.93GHz and Core i7-965 XE running at 3.2Ghz. It is available in Sim Lim Square as of today, they started shipping it 2 weeks ago to retailers at Sim Lim Square but they only can start selling from today onwards.

Prices wise, it is pretty steep, ranging from SGD$919 to SGD$2,176 with motherboard bundle and not forgetting it only support DDR3 RAM (which is expensive now) if I am not wrong.

Core i7 Prices - Click To View Larger Image

You might want to wait till next year for the price to drop before upgrading your computer. It suddenly makes my Core 2 Quad Q9450 very outdated. But I think the next time I change my computer (5 years later in 2013), it should have at least 16 cores and with HT, it will become 32 cores.

I have uploaded the pictures take I took to Facebook, you can check out here.

Wilfrid if you are reading this, thanks for the dinner treat =D

I ordered my Fabrix Cases for my MacBook Pro last Sunday and it got delivered to me on Wednesday via post. It is not by courier but a normal mail post (SGD$1.50 stamp). I am also wondering how the postman manage to squeeze the laptop sleeve into my letter box.

I ordered the Delux Laptop Cases and I chose Black Suite as the design. It cost SGD$59.90 and you can pay by Paypal. Delivery is free if it is within Singapore.

Saw two threads in Hardware Zone forums, Post pic of ur room~ and Showcase Your Mac(s) 2008 and I have decided to take some pictures of my computer table.

Just thought of sharing with you guys if you are wondering how my workspace is.

Yaki Yaki Bo
Yesterday was Li Xiang 24th birthday. Had a mini celebration with her by eating at Yaki Yaki Bo at Jurong Point at the newly opened Japanese food area called Shokutsu 10 - Osaka. It is a Teppanyaki Restaurant, similar concept to Sakae Teppanyaki. The interesting thing is that instead of placing your food on plates or aluminum foil, the place it on top of a bread perhaps to absorb the oil. Prices range between SGD$12.90 to SGD$29.90 for the executive set meals.

Personally I think that the chef at Yaki Yaki Bo do not have much skills as compared to the chef at Sakae Teppanyaki. There is almost no performance and the way the cook is very “neat” whereas the chef at Sakae Teppanyaki do perform some tricks and he cook the food almost all over the place.

You can view the photos that I uploaded to Facenook here, Lay Hiang 24th Birthday.

Quantum Of Solace
After dinner, we went to watch Quantum Of Solace at GV Jurong Point. The show is at 9.25pm. The movie as average, lots of action but the storyline is a little confusing at least more confusing than Casio Royale. Many people say you need to re-watch Casio Royale before you can watch Quantum Of Solace which I think that is true to a certain extend. Basically I have no idea what is going on, I just watch it for the action.

Presents
Bought 3 presents for Li Xiang, the first present is Kipling new Autumn/Winter 2008 Collection wallet, called “If | New Money Cuby Brown”, the second present is a book called Package Design Now and the last present is also a book called Little People in the City: The Street Art of Slinkachu. Li Xiang is a bookworm!

Happy 24th Birthday Penguin!

Looking Back

• 23rd Birthday
• 22nd Birthday
• 21st Birthday
• 20th Birthday
• 19th Birthday

Tropic Thunder
Caught Tropic Thunder a few weeks back and I think is is not a bad show, lots of cameo appearances. And I didn’t picture Les Grossman as Tom Cruise till I saw the credits.

I also like the conversation between Tugg Speedman and Alpa Chino, it made me laugh the most.

Tugg Speedman: Now, let’s go get those Viet Congs.
Alpa Chino: “Viet Cong!”
Tugg Speedman: What?
Alpa Chino: It’s “viet cong.” There’s no “s,” it’s already plural. You wouldn’t say “Chineses…”

Not forgetting the scene when Tom Cruise dances to Low by Flo-Rida Featuring T Pain. Thumbs up for that.

Saw V
Met up with Geargina last Monday to watch Saw V as no one dared to watch the show because of the gore. Had Sushi Tei at VivoCity for the first time as I don’t really have a good impression of Sushi Tei as being good. But to my surprise, the food is not bad and the prices are quite reasonable.

Saw V is still as good but not as much gore as the predecessor. I can’t wait for Saw VI next Halloween as that will conclude the whole series.

President
Barack Obama: 364
John McCain: 163

Senate
Democrats: 57
Republicans: 40

House
Democrats: 254
Republicans: 173

Now that Obama wins, hopefully US economy will recover and most importantly US dollar will go up!

Fellow Singaporeans, we need to make a change to Singapore in 2011. I had enough of our current government.

As many of you all know that my MacBook Pro that was shipped to me on the 21st October 2008 contains a dead pixel which is located right in the middle of the screen. It is VERY irritating as well as distracting. I expect it to be of a better quality since it is from Apple, but guess I was wrong. Everything in these days are made in China due to the low labour cost and hence things are getting from bad to worst.

Between 22nd And 24th October 2008
I called the Apple Singapore Technical Hotline, 6835-1812 three bloody times and keep emphasising that my dead pixel is in the centre of the screen and it is irritating as well as distracting. But three times they refused to exchange for me because they say it is Apple policy that you need to have at least 3 dead pixel before you can exchange. They also advised me to bring my MacBook Pro down to those authorized retailers to check for dead pixels as I may have more than 1 and hence I may get to change it. WTF? I called up iShop which is located in Orchard Cineleisure to ask will there be a fee if I bring my MacBook Pro down which is purchase from Apple Online Store to check for dead pixel. They guy over the phone said maybe there will be a fee and they only will send it to Apple on your behalf if you have more than 5 dead pixels. WTFx2?

27th October 2008 (Monday) - 13:28
I almost resigned to my fate when I just thought of trying my luck and send an email to sgstore@asia.apple.com as my “Apple Store Order Acknowledgement” email said I can send them an email at that email address. I asked about the exchange policy and told them I am not satisfied with my MacBook Pro as it has a dead pixel on it after paying SGD$3.6K for it.

27th October 2008 (Monday) - 16:29
Who knows, I got a reply a few hours later and the lady who contacted me is Diana. She requested for pictures of the dead pixel which I gladly took and sent it to her.

27th October 2008 (Monday) - 19:01
3 hours after I sent her the pictures, she got back to me saying she is willing to offer me a replacement but is not able to guarantee that the next replacement unit will be flawless (I have no problem with that).

28th October 2008 (Tuesday) - 10:36
I received the “Apple Confirmation for Return Request” email which gave me a return number for me to track the return status at http://www.apple.com/SingaporeOrderStatus

28th October 2008 (Tuesday) - 10:51
I emailed Diana asking 3 questions:

1. In the “Apple Confirmation for Return Request”, it stated it is for refund, can I just ignore it? As for my case it is an exchange?
2. I have to pack everything (Cables, Adapters, CDs) and MacBookPro unit into the original box right?
3. Roughly how long do I need to wait before I will received my replacement MacBook Pro?

Just a note, the appointed courier will come and pick your MacBook Pro within two business days from the date of the “Apple Confirmation for Return Request”

28th October 2008 (Tuesday) - 13:30
She replied:

1. Yes. You can ignore the refund email confirmation as it is a confirmation of replacement for your case.
2. Yes, please packed the items of (Cables, Adapters, CDs) and MacBookPro unit back into the original box for smooth pick up.
3. Approximately five working days for a replacement of new MacBook Pro.

28th October 2008 (Tuesday) - 15:12
TNT called up and said whether they could come and pick my MacBook Pro tomorrow which is 29th October 2008 (Wednesday). I fixed a time with them which is between 4pm to 6pm as I got class before that.

I didn’t expect TNT to call on the same day that I received the “Apple Confirmation for Return Request”. Apple is quite efficient!

29th October 2008 (Wednesday) - 15:22
TNT came and pick up my MacBook Pro up at 3.22pm despite telling them that I will be at home after 4pm! But luckily my brother is at home and I have briefed him on the procedure the night before as I know TNT will never stick to the indicated time. Basically you need to pack up your MacBook Pro and print the return shipping label out and cut it. The return shipping label can be also found at http://www.apple.com/SingaporeOrderStatus

There is 2 part to that label, the first part you need to put it inside your MacBook Pro box and the second part you need to ask the delivery/pick up man to staple it together with the invoice.

30th October 2008 (Thursday) - 15:53
I received the “Apple Store Shipment Notification” email which is basically the same email as I got previously when my MacBook Pro ships. The only difference here is that the price is stated as $0.00. The tracking number as well as the appointed courier (TNT) is stated in that email as well. The shipment date is stated as 30th October 2008 (Thursday) and the delivers by date is stated as 31st October 2008 (Friday).

I clicked on the tracking number link in the email and I got an error from Apple “We can’t find the requested tracking information.”

This is because in Apple your MacBook Pro has already shipped and you have received it. The replacement MacBook Pro is based on the same Web Order Number and NOT a different one. If you go to http://www.apple.com/SingaporeOrderStatus and check, it will show your previous MacBook Pro shipped date rather than your replacement MacBook Pro ship date.

31th October 2008 (Friday) - 12:31
TNT delivers my replacement MacBook Pro. I didn’t even know what time are they coming. I called and ask and they just say within office hours. The delivery guy only called me 15 minutes before reaching my place. I was in school but luckily there is someone at home to collect it.

31th October 2008 (Friday) - 16:06
Received a “Apple Return Request Completed” email.

It Is Over
Even though you don’t read my blog, but I still have to say it, thank you Diana from Apple for all the help you have provided me!

My replacement MacBook Pro is perfect, no dead pixel! Finally, the ordeal/saga is over. It just takes 5 days for Apple to collect and replace my MacBook Pro which I must say it is pretty efficient.

Also, if I am not wrong, Apply return/exchange policy is 14 days.

For those who called Apple Technical Support and they refuse to do any exchange for you despite it is Apple fault for the defect, email sgstore@asia.apple.com and send them pictures of the defects.

Last but not least, screw all Made in China products (which practically means everything).

View Photos: MacBook Pro Dead Pixel

October 2008 Total Traffic

• Total Hits: 10,028,100
• Total Files: 9,117,663
• Total Pages: 732,058
• Total Visits: 167,902
• Total KBytes: 36,662,005
• Total Unique Sites: 142,702
• Total Unique URLs: 15,935
• Total Unique Referrers: 19,612
• Total Unique User Agents: 5,624

October 2008 Daily Traffic

• Hits per Day: Average: 323,487 - Max: 386,987
• Files per Day: Average: 294,118 - Max: 350,534
• Pages per Day: Average: 23,614 - Max: 33,908
• Visits per Day: Average: 5,416 - Max: 6,642
• KBytes per Day: Average: 1,182,645 - Max: 1,514,238

Note: Green denotes increase and Red denotes decrease when compared with September 2008.

Previous month site traffic: September 2008

Got my hands on the standalone Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 Premier Edition from The Software Boutique for SGD$79.90. There is also another version of the Premier Edition which is SGD$89.90 and it is bundled with a T-Shirt and a 2GB Thumbdrive.

The default bundles is really lousy!

SGD$119 for the Officer’s pack which includes the Premier Edition and the Dicota Bag.

SGD$219 for the Commander’s Pack which includes the Dicota Bag, Premier Edition, Microsoft SideWinder X6 Gaming Keyboard and Red Alert 3 Garskin custom keyboard decals.

EA, please listen to this! Nobody wants all those stupid bundles judging from the posts in Hardware Zone Forums. People just want the standalone Premier Edition, nothing else.

Pictures time!

Tint Box (Front)

Tint Box (Back)

Tint Box + Plastic Cover (Front)

Tint Box + Plastic Cover (Back)

Poster, Manual, Warhammer Online CD Key, C&C Future Beta CD Key

Music Disc

Bonus Disc + Game Disc

Today marks our 4th anniversary together which is about 1,460 days.

Went to Li Xiang school to pick her up and we proceed on to Bras Basah to help my mom buy the expiry date sticker from Modern Bookstore located at level 1. Li Xiang bought a book from Basheer Graphic Books located at Level 4 as a birthday present for her friend, Nicole.

We also went to Fancy Papers which is located opposite National Library Board to get some art papers for Li Xiang school work and had lunch at Park Lane Wan Ton Mee which is located opposite Bugis Junction.

After doing all doing these errands, we went to Singapore Biennale 2008 (South Beach Development) as Li Xiang needed to retake some of the shots that she took previously. There are still 2 more places of the Biennale that we are going to covered tomorrow as it is quite out of the way for today’s itinerary.

After Biennale, we went around Haji Lane looking for costume’s mask for Nicole’s 21st birthday party tomorrow. We did saw 2 shops selling but I did not buy any as it is too expensive (Li Xiang already got hers). I think I will just forgo the mask as with spectacles on it is quite difficult to wear any mask.

I also went to a shop selling fabrix cases which are laptop sleeves as recommended by leinad of Hardware Zone. Unfortunately, they do not have MacBook Pro 15″ sizes available and I have to order. I hope leinad does a Mass Order (MO) for this.

Finally it is time for dinner. We had dinner at relish by wildrocket which is located at #02-01 Cluny Court (next to Serene Centre) at 501 Bukit Timah Road. We ordered the Chicken Thai Salad ($15), Handmade Onion Rings ($8) and Chocolate Cointreau Milkshake ($9.50). For the main course, I ordered Bacon Cheese Burger ($19) while Li Xiang ordered Curry Chicken Burger ($17). Total bill is $80.62 including 10% service charge and 7% GST.

The burger was good and the prices are very reasonable. The most expensive burger is priced at $19. It is definitely much better than uberburger (it had closed down) that we ate 2 years ago.

The milkshake is fantastic, it is thick and creamy, I find it better than Project Blood Brothers Cafe’s milkshake. Li Xiang love the onion ring a lot. As for the burger’s patty, it is thick, juicy and tasty! Li Xiang’s curry chicken burger really taste like curry chicken! Not forgetting they serve each burger with lots of fries that both of us can’t finish our own portion.

Happy 4th Anniversary my penguin! I love you always <3

Looking back:

• 3rd Anniversary
• 2nd Anniversary
• 1st Anniversary
• 0th Anniversary

*UPDATE* The Chocolate Chiffon cake that I bake was a success but the chocolate taste is not strong enough, have to melt the chocolate and spread it over the slice of cake when eating. Thanks to my mum for helping me, even though she did almost 50% of the whole process. Thanks Mum!