Founder of lesterchan.net, a Singapore tech and gadgets blog running since 2002. An engineering leader by day and a WordPress plugin developer since 2003, with a soft spot for gadgets, smart home, and a good deal.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1) 3G arrives in Singapore from 16th June 2012 for S$798, without contract and including 7% GST. It features a 10.1-inch WXGA 1280x800 display, HSDPA 21Mbps connectivity, a 1GHz dual-core processor, and weighs 587g.
I ordered the Apple Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter for S$38 on the very day it was announced at WWDC 2012, and it arrived the next day, so Apple has ready stock in Singapore. Funan's Multimedia Integrated didn't have it.
Did you know that students, educators, and Ministry of Education staff in Singapore can buy genuine Microsoft and Adobe products at a discount from mine.com.sg? That includes Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 and Adobe CS6 Design and Web Premium.
The HTC One S arrives in Singapore from Saturday, 16th June 2012, for S$948, in a single Gradient Metal finish and bundled with a free Beats Solo Headset. It runs Android 4.0 with HTC Sense on a 1.7GHz dual-core Snapdragon.
I bought the Wacom Bamboo Stylus from The Software Boutique for S$42, choosing Black from six colours. Of the three styluses Li Xiang owns, the Sensu Artist Brush, Power Support Smart Pen, and Wacom Bamboo, she preferred the Bamboo.
The Nokia 808 PureView is now available in Singapore at a recommended S$839, without contract and including 7% GST. Black and white are available at launch, with no word on red. The price feels steep for a Nokia Belle phone.
Recoil Winders was the 7th Kickstarter project I backed, on 6th February 2012. It funded later that month, raising US$141,465 against a US$10,000 goal. After three months in the works, I finally received it on 4th June, having pledged US$55.
From 1st July 2012, SingTel's new Flexi plans affect new and re-contracting customers. The data bundle drops from 12GB to 2GB on Flexi Lite, where most of us sit, while the SMS quota rises from 550 to 800. Disappointing.
I was invited to the launch of starcount at Pangaea, Marina Bay Sands, and they clearly have strong backing. Singapore's IDA, IDMPO, STB, EDB, and Marina Bay Sands itself are all supporting the venture, billed as the world's first.
The Windows 8 Release Preview is out, the final pre-release before launch. It includes Windows 8, Internet Explorer 10, new apps for Hotmail, SkyDrive, and Messenger, and hundreds of new and updated apps in the Windows Store.
The Samsung Galaxy SIII arrives in Singapore from Wednesday, 30th May 2012, retailing for S$998 including taxes and without contract, at all three operators, SingTel, M1, and StarHub. Pre-orders begin the day before, on the 29th.
I pre-ordered my copy of Diablo III: Collector's Edition from Amazon on 14th March 2012. It shipped on 17th May, a day after release, and arrived on the 20th, a Sunday DHL delivery. The game cost US$99.90, with US$19.98 shipping.
I've used Panic's Coda 1 for nearly 30 months since starting at mig33, and waited ages for Coda 2, which today arrives. It launches on 24th May 2012, and for the first 24 hours it's 50% off at US$49.
The Sony Xperia P, U, and sola are now available in Singapore at all Sony stores, Sony centres, Xperia concept stores, and local telcos. The Xperia P retails for S$688 in silver or black, with a 4-inch Reality Display.
The Nokia Lumia 900 arrives in Singapore from Saturday, 26th May 2012, retailing for S$849 including taxes and without contract, at all three operators, SingTel, M1, and StarHub. The Singapore unit is the non-LTE version, running HSDPA+ at 42Mbps.
I was invited to the Sony Walkman Z Series launch at Helipad yesterday. The first product in the new Z Series is the Walkman Z1050 player, with solid specs for a music player: a 1GHz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2.
CableKeeps was the 4th Kickstarter project I backed, on 11th August 2011. It funded on 9th September, raising US$37,498 against a US$35,000 goal. My US$28 pledge, plus US$10 shipping, got me any two units from Nibbles, Goldie, or Gulp.
The Logitech Touch Mouse M600 was announced in February 2012, and I'd been keen to try it. It's now available in Singapore for S$89. Its headline feature is a responsive touch surface that reacts directly to your fingers.
Samsung announced the Galaxy SIII, successor to the Galaxy SII and its new flagship, at Samsung Mobile Unpacked 2012 in London yesterday. Samsung live-streamed the event, but oddly the NDA for major tech sites lifted right before it.
The Nokia Lumia 610 arrives in Singapore from Saturday, 5th May 2012, retailing for S$379 including taxes and without contract, at all three operators, SingTel, M1, and StarHub. White, black, and magenta launch with cyan following from 12th May.
I attended the Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 launch at BoConcept in Paragon Shopping Centre. Two products debuted: the headline IdeaCentre A720 at S$2,699 and the IdeaPad Y480 at S$1,499. Lenovo bills the A720 as the industry's slimmest 27-inch all-in-one.
SingTel has launched its own cloud syncing and storage service, SingTel Store & Share, essentially its take on Google Drive, SkyDrive, or Dropbox. For now it supports PC, iOS, and Android, but not Mac yet. SingNet fibre customers get 10GB.