Bought the Phottix Cleon 2 Wireless Remote C8 from Red Dot Photo for SGD$59. You can pay using PayPal and delivery is free! Ordered on the 16th February 2010 and it was delivered to me in just 2 days, on the 18th February 2010!

The reason why I decided to get a remote control is because I have been bringing out my tripod lately to take group shots and it is kinda a hassle to keep repeatedly setting the timer. Did some research on Club Snap Forums and found out that the Phottix is one of the best wireless remote around.

Box Front

Box Back

Box Contents

On The Camera

Mom bought for me the Digi Cabi Electronic Dry Cabinet AD-050 for SGD$209 at Challenger VivoCity. The reason I decided to get a dry cabinet is because I saw some rust on my lens filter when I put my camera in my room. I only on the air-conditioner at night, so I am guessing the rust is created by the condensation of cold air. Since the camera cost about SGD$1.7K and it is an expensive and ongoing investment, I think it is worth it to get a dry cabinet.

Specifications
External dimensions: 35cm (width) × 32cm (depth) × 50cm (height)
Effective capacity: 50 litre
Power consumption: 5 watt
Digital Hygrometer: 1
Door: 1
Tray: 2x Fully adjustable roller tray

Box

Contents

Front View

Back View

Roller Tray

Roller Tray Out

Camera In The Dry Cabinet

D-Link replied me after a week and a follow-up email from me. The normal repair price is USD$61 (SGD$86) and after the repair is done, I will get an additional 3 months warranty.

However, out of good will, they are willing to give me 30% discount off the repair charges which is now USD$42 (SGD$59) and an additional 3 months warranty, so that makes it 6 months warranty in total. They accept cash only and for some reason they do not quote in SGD$. Weird.

Despite their good gesture, I don’t want to take the risk of my DNS-323 failing again and I have to repeat the whole process of backing up my data onto an external HDD and then copying the data back to the NAS. It is a nightmare and I got a shock and felt lost when my NAS fails.

I decided to get a new and better NAS instead which is the Synology Disk Station DS210j. Got it for SGD$408 from Memory World at Funan. I think this is the last piece available in Singapore, the next shipment is coming in next month. Thanks to KK from Funan’s Memory World for reserving it for me. You can go look for him if you are looking to buy any Qnap or Synology NAS =)

Box

Box Contents

DS210j

Front

Back

Open

Inserting HDD

DS210j On My Table

I am still considering whether or not to take on the good will and repair the NAS and keep it for other purposes or sell it away.

Ordered a 21.5″ iMac (3.06GHz) for my dad to replace his old computer (which is also my previous desktop computer). Actually suppose to order 2 sets. One for my Dad to put it at home and the other for my mom to replace her old Fujitsu laptop in the office. However, my mom got some doubts about the Mac OS X and software compatibility issues and hence ended up getting 1 set for my dad first. In the mean time she can play around with it at home before making a final decision.

Since I am still technically a student, I made use of the Education Store and hence it is cheaper by SGD$100. The iMac cost SGD$1,688. I also topped up another SGD$218 for Apple Care so that the warranty will get extended by another 2 years.

My mom preferred the idea of non-wireless keyboard and mouse so that there is no need to change batteries every now and then. I opted for the Apple Keyboard with Numeric Keypad. As for the Magic Mouse, I wanted it so I bought another Apple Mouse. The difference between each wireless and non-wireless mouse/keyboard is SGD$20, and unfortunately Apple do not refund you the difference if you opt for the non-wireless mouse/keyboard.

The Apple Mouse and the iMac was delivered on two separate dates maybe because I “customized” my iMac by changing the bundled keyboard.

Specifications

• 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
• 1920 x 1080 resolution
• 4GB memory
• 500GB hard drive
• 8x double-layer SuperDrive
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics

Damage

• iMac: 21.5″ (3.06GHz): SGD$1,688
• Apple Care: SGD$218
• Apple Mouse: SGD$78
• Total: SGD$1,984

Dates

• Ordered Date: 17th January 2010
• Apple Mouse Delivered Date: 19th January 2010
• iMac Delivered Date: 20th January 2010

iMac Box

iMac Contents

iMac Accessories

Apple Mouse Box

Apple Mouse Box Open

Magic Mouse Front

Magic Mouse Back

Magic Mouse Side

iMac On The Table

Intel Event At Ben & Jerry’s (Dempsey Village)

Had a great time today at Intel’s event at Ben & Jerry’s at Dempsey Village. Firstly, free flow of Ben & Jerry ice cream (I only ate five scoops and drank a cup of coke float) and secondly was the ride on the Segway! It was my first time riding the Segway. Felt nervous at first because of the phobia of falling down, but after the first two rounds got kinda used to it and it was very fun (I went a total of 4 rounds around the building). If I have some spare cash, I will definitely get one, but it is freaking ex, minimum at least SGD$12K.

My First Attempt At Segway

Intel introduces a range of 32 nanometer processors across the Intel Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 family, about 29 of them. There are 3 Core strength to these processors:

Intel Turbo Boost Technology

1. Intel Turbo Boost Technology for adaptive performance, and thus smarter computing. Intel Turbo Boost Technology automatically accelerates performance, adjusting to the workload to give users an immediate performance boost when needed.

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

2. Intel Hyper-Threading Technology, available in Intel Core i7, Core i5 and Core i3 processors, enables smart multi-tasking by allowing each processing core to run multiple “threads,” providing amazing responsiveness and great performance, balanced with industry-leading energy efficiency when processing several tasks simultaneously.

Intel HD Graphics

3. Intel HD Graphics, the processors deliver stunning visuals and smooth high-definition (HD) video playback. It’s also the industry’s first integrated solution to deliver multi-channel Dolby TrueHD and DTS Premium Suite home theater audio. In addition, Intel HD Graphics support mainstream and casual 3-D gaming without the need for an add-in video card, and offer full support for the new Microsoft Windows 7 operating system.

Intel Core Mobile Processor Laptops

Intel Core Mobile Processors

Intel Core Mobile Processor Desktop

Intel Core Desktop Processors

Intel Core Embedded Line-up

Intel Wireless Adapters
Apart from processors, Intel also introduces 4 new wireless adapters which features 802.11n, dual-band and WiMax support.

The Intel Centrino brand now represents Intel’s wireless products, targeting a broader range of users than ever before. Three new Intel Centrino Wireless adapters feature advanced 802.11n multi-stream capabilities and dual-band support for WiFi, offering users up to 8 times greater speed, consistent coverage and reliable connectivity while consuming minimal power.

Intel offers a complete line of high-quality adapters and its integrated WiMAX/WiFi adapter supports 2.3, 2.5 and 3.5GHz WiMAX bands delivering up to 20Mbps on the go.

All the adapters support Intel My WiFi Technology, which allows users to turn their laptop into a virtual hotspot and directly connect wireless devices to their laptop. Remote WiFi client management with Intel Embedded IT and Intel Active Management Technology 6.0 also helps enable remote client management for the enterprise.

Press Release Intel Unveils All New 2010 Intel Core™ Processor Family
Facebook Gallery: Intel 2010 Core Processor Family

MacPadd does aluminum mouse pads. It is precision manufactured from a solid piece of Aluminum. It is available it in two sizes, MacPadd (9″x6″) costs USD$25.00 and MacPadd Pro (9″x9″) costs USD$35.00. Unfortunately, their online shop does not ship to Singapore. There are two other distributors, MacWay is based in France and Other World Computing based in the USA.

I did not check out MacWay instead I checked out Other World Computing and it does ship to Singapore and best of all it can be paid using PayPal. I got the MacPadd Pro at USD$31.99 and shipping to Singapore cost USD$13.73, so total is USD$45.72. I placed order and paid on the 9th November 2009 and on the 10th November 2009 it was shipped and I received it yesterday on the 18th November 2009. Took only 8 days to reach Singapore shores.

The built is pretty good but the edges can be better as I still see some protruding stuff. Also the back looks way too ugly!

Box

Box Opened

Packaging

Front

Back

MacPadd Logo

Check out MacPadd and MacPadd Pro at Other World Computing.

Got myself the new Wacom Bamboo Pen & Touch for SGD$179 which was released by Wacom on the 24th September 2009. Wanted to get it even earlier but it was either out of stock at certain places or the stock was not in yet.

I went to Funan’s Challenger and they are left with Wacom Bamboo Touch and Wacom Bamboo Fun, the Pen and Pen & Touch model was sold out. Went into a few shops and they have not brought in. Finally, I found it being sold at Multimedia Integrated (MMI). The price is controlled so it doesn’t really matter where you buy from.

Here are the prices for the respective models:

• Bamboo Fun – SGD$329
• Bamboo – SGD$179
• Bamboo Pen – SGD$129
• Bamboo Touch – SGD$129

I have used it for 2 days now. I find the pen is pretty much the same as Li Xiang’s Intuos 3 so nothing much to comment. The most attractive part is the multitouch. It only support 2 fingers and not more than that. I have no idea whether it is a hardware limitation or a software limitation. I hope it is the latter as that can be fixed through firmware updates.

The multitouch is not as smooth as a regular laptop trackpad. If you compare it with my MacBook Pro multitouch trackpad, my MBP’s one is much smoother. There is some jerkiness in the cursor when you move it with your fingers. The motion gesture like 2 fingers scrolling, zooming, rotating all works fine except for the text selection. When I move my cursor with one of my fingers to a certain point and if I decided to continue moving it again, sometimes it mistaken me for wanting to select the text and hence when I do that, some portion of the text near my cursor will be selected. It is kinda irritating. But of course this can be disabled in the Pen Tablet control panel. Hopefully future firmware will fix both of this issue.

But for SGD$179, it is very worth getting it.

Here are some unboxing pictures:

Box – Front View

Box – Back View

Box – Inner View

Box Opened

Box Contents

Tablet Wrapped

Tablet

My Starhub MaxOnline Premium broadband plan has expired a few months back. Rather then waiting till December 2009 for promotion, I decided to renew and go for the Enjoy 30% OFF MaxOnline Ultimate promotion (till 31st December 2009). The usual price for MaxOnline Ultimate is SGD$124.12 per month but with this promotion, it is just SGD$86.88 per month. The contract length is standard 24 months. Thus I made a savings of SGD$2,978.88 – SGD$2,085.12 = SGD$893.76 which is the price of a cheap laptop or a high end netbook.

The freebies include the delicious Motorola SURFboard SB6120 and free 12 months subscription of Norton 360 All-In-One Security Package Version 3.

Box – Front View

Box – Back View

Contents

Modem – Front/Back View

Modem – Side View

In Action

It takes about 3 to 4 working days to activate the service. 100Mbps (12.5MBps) downstream and 10Mbps(1.25MBps) upstream here I come!

Introduction
The new Acer Aspire Timeline series mark the beginning of a new era in mobile computing, where users stay connected and enjoy entertainment with their notebooks for a longer time. With the new Aspire Timeline series, Acer reached a delicate equilibrium between computer lightness and battery life, creating a series of featherweight notebooks that give you an entire day of computing on a single charge.
Long lasting battery life for all day computing Acer based the new Aspire Timeline notebooks on a simple yet revolutionary idea: a series of ultra thin and light notebooks which are more efficient, reducing energy consumption to the minimum for maximum usage time. The result is a notebook as light as 1.6kg, and with more than eight hours battery life, so that important tasks will not be interrupted by a loss of
power.

In addition, with the Acer Smart Power key, battery life can be further extended through advanced settings. Press the Smart Power key to boost power saving capabilities and extend battery life, thus expanding the time of computing freedom to more than 8 hours.

Front View

Side View

Features

• Acer Comfy Touch Technology – An innovation with Intel Laminar Wall Jet Technology
  Besides enhancing battery life, Acer is dedicated to improve user experience with the Acer Aspire Timeline by developing a cooling technology in collaboration with Intel – Laminar Wall Jet Technology. It exploits the technology that has been used successfully for cooling turbine blades. Through the addition of louvers to the inlet vents, the cooling airflow is redirected along the bottom side of the notebook chassis, putting fresh air precisely where it’s needed to better cool the skin. The result of Acer Comfy Touch technology – thermal comfort of close to 6 degrees lower than the user’s skin temperature.
• Ultra Thin and Lightweight
  Through designing the Aspire Timeline, Acer broke another barrier by creating the finest and lightest notebooks to provide all-day computing. The Aspire timeline is 24mm (less than one inch) at its thinnest point. All thanks to the aluminum cover, it remains featherweight, ranging from 1.6 kg for the 13.3″ model up to just 1.9 kg for the 14″, making it both lighter and easier to carry around than anything else.
• Go Eco-friendly with energy efficient components
  The Aspire Timeline Series complies with the strictest Energy Star 5.0 prerequisites, with the notebook being efficient even when using the power adapter. Acer Power Smart adapter does even more, as it consumes 66% less than required by Energy StarPlus, the Power Smart adapter enters adaptive charging mode automatically when the battery is fully charged this stops consuming energy and reduces the tear and wear on the battery.
• High Definition Enjoyment
  Available in two form factors, 13.3″ and 14″, presenting bright, lifelike images through Acer CineCrystal LED backlit display with true 16:9 aspect ratio, 1366X768 HD resolution for exceptional media playback. To let users enjoy a fully immersive entertainment, the Aspire Timeline series is equipped with Dolby Sound Room that offers a spectacular surround sound from any pair of speakers or headphones.
• Data freedom
  Harnessing the latest Intel Core 2 Duo Processor Ultra Low Voltage solutions, the Aspire ,Timeline series comes with integrated Intel Graphics and is equipped with DDR3 system memory to breeze through multitasking requirements. Ample storage is provided by an HDD with up to 500 GB of capacity. Born to offer ultra-mobility and total freedom, the Aspire Timeline Series comes with the most up to date communication options: built-in Wi-Fi functionalities, supporting Acer SignalUp, allowing full connectivity for unprecedented mobility. The Acer Crystal Eye webcam with enhanced Acer PrimaLite technology delivers superior video performance on the Aspire one for video conferencing. higher-quality images, smoother video streaming performance are delivered with better frames-per-second (FPS)
  rate.
• Effortless Backup
  For a total ease of mind, Acer Backup Solution, combining Acer Backup Manager and Easy Launch Back up key, places back up at your fingertips. Acer Backup Manger offers flexible management, allowing efficient and hassle free data back up. Data backup can be scheduled at specific intervals with compression of files across different media types such as external hard disk drives, USB medias or optical discs. The data backup solution also boasts more security enhancement: a password can be added to protect user. With the Acer Timeline notebooks the limits of space and time become blurred taking you in a dimension where you are the master of your time.

Prices
It will be available at all Acer Authorised Resellers from 15th May 2009 onwards and prices range between SGD$1,598 and SGD$1,998.

Specifications
The official Acer Timeline Specifications is in a terrible mess, I can’t understand a thing from it. I have taken the liberty to scan the brochure that were given to us. You can view it here (532.3KB).

Personal Comment
I do not have a good impression of Acer laptop because of its poor battery life because Li Xiang is using a laptop and just after a year, the battery can go flat within 30 minutes. I do not believed that the wear and tear effect is so fast, my 3 years old Fujitsu can last me for almost 3 hours and on top of that I always plugged in to charge and use at the same time even though my battery is full.

But this time round, I believe Acer is going to rebrand itself and target towards longer battery life. When the Press Release states 8 hours, the value is derived by setting the brightness to the lowest and offing WiFi and the laptop will play a movie continuously till the battery is totally drained.

I like the fact that the laptop is very thin and light! It weights just about 400 grams more than the average netbook but come equipped with a Intel Core 2 Solo or a Duo processor.

The Intel Laminar Wall Jet Technology is amazing! The laptop that were showcased to us were not plugged in to any power outlet and has been switched on for more than 2 hours and the laptop is still cool! It is definitely cooler than my Fujitsu laptop and even more so when compared to my MacBook Pro.

The finishing is done in brushed aluminum for its rigidity because it is thin and hence plastic is not a suitable material.

The Acer power management software will automatically shutdown devices and that has been idle to conserve power. For example if you DVD-Rom has been idling for let say 15 minutes, it will automatically cut the power to the DVD-Rom and hence conserving power. Likewise for USB flash drives.

So interesting things, the DVD-Rom eject button is not on the DVD tray but located just about the keyboard.

Links

• Acer Website
• Acer Timeline Website

My exams ended on the 6th May 2009 and immediately after that, went for some retail therapy and bought a Nintendo Wii from Qisahn.com located at 545 Orchard Road #05-07, Far East Shopping Centre. It was kinda of a last minute decision to buy Wii which happens on the day before while studying for my Statistics & Probability (ST2334) paper.

The 3 of us, myself, Suqin and Kelvin (for his girlfriend’s birthday) bought the Wii together. We thought that buying 3 Wii together there would be discount, but unfortunately that is not the case. I spent a total of SGD$390 on this while Suqin and Kelvin each spend SGD$378 because they did not get the 3rd party component cable. Hong Jun also helped to inject some money into the economy by buying Wii Fit (that will be my next buy) and Weiquan bought some board games.

Price Breakdown

• Wii Korean Set (English): SGD$309
• Wii Nunchuck: SGD$26
• Wii Wiimote: SGD$48
• 3rd Party Wii Component Cable: SGD$12
• Discount of SGD$5
• Total: SGD$390

Box

Extra Wiimote/Nunchuck

3rd Party Wii Component Cable

Love The “Layers” Numbering

Layer 1

Layer 2

Nintendo Wii Contents