TechVirtuoso

Commitment Issues – Sold the Nexus One, Back to iOS

July 29th, 2010 at 10:54 PM  4 Comments

I’ve never been one to have commitment issues. But my decision to move from the iPhone 4 to the Nexus One just couldn’t stick. Last month I wrote about what I saw as the flaws of the iOS platform and specifically the issues I had with the iPhone 4. I also wrote a glowing review of the Nexus One and I stand by (most) of that analysis. But yesterday I sold my Nexus One and will soon be buying an iPhone 4.

When I announced this “news” on Twitter and Facebook last night I think I stunned just about everyone of my friends and followers. I got a lot of questions like “What did Android do wrong?” but did get a few statements like “I knew you’d be back” … when I left last month, I didn’t intend to come back. But there were a few lingering issues that I just couldn’t get past.

Subsidies

The Nexus One I purchased cost me $529 direct from Google. So I take that phone and attach it to my AT&T account and then pay AT&T the same amount of money for my voice, data and TXT messages as I would if I were on a 2-year agreement. AT&T spends nothing upfront and makes a larger profit from me than it does for someone who spends $199 for a iPhone 4. The obvious benefit for me is that I can take my phone and go to another carrier, or cancel my account anytime I want. But here’s the kicker… my only real choice is AT&T.

Beyond the logistical issues of having every friend and family member I know being on AT&T (free mobile to mobile) and the fact that they have one of the better networks in the Kansas City area… Google for some reason designed two different Nexus Ones. One radio optimized for T-Mobile and one for AT&T. So if I decided I was fed up and wanted to move to T-Mobile, I’d basically cripple my phone by relegating it to EDGE network data speeds. And since obviously Verizon and Sprint are on different technologies, they’re not even something to be considered. Google would have been wise to use a radio that would work on both types of GSM networks, if that were possible. Realistically, I’m locked into AT&T, regardless of if I have a 2-year contract or not.

So the real question for me was, in order to make the value of owning the Nexus One “worth it” … was my experience with it more than 2.5x better than the iPhone 4?

Basically. No. (more…)

Lenovo A70z Giveaway Winner! Plus another chance to win!

July 7th, 2010 at 10:46 PM  4 Comments

We’re pleased to announce that the winner of this weekend’s Lenovo A70z Giveaway is… Dennis Hwang (@dennishwang) — congratulations to him, he should be receiving his brand new all-in-one PC very shortly.

We had an overwhelming response and as a consolation prize to all our visitors, we’d like to offer you all a second chance to win!

Ivy Worldwide, which was our partner in giving away the last system, is conducting a survey of people involved with small and medium business, to get their opinions on technology purchases. It’s an easy, 15 question survey, that enters you into a random drawing to win a Lenovo A70z, as well as many other prizes.

There are some caveats, and there is no set cut-off date for the contest. When Ivy receives a sufficient number of submissions they’ll take that data and select a winner. Only people who complete the survey fully will be eligible to win, and you’ll need to give them your e-mail address as that’s how they’ll contact you to let you know you’ve won. Don’t worry, they’re good people  and won’t give away your contact information to bad people. In fact, once the contest is over they’ll remove the contact data from their records forever.

We’re also looking forward to getting some other gear to giveaway in the coming months, so keep checking back for more awesome free stuff (and check back for our regularly scheduled IT content too while you’re at it.)

Complete the Survey

The Nexus One vs The iPhone (and life after iOS)

July 2nd, 2010 at 2:36 PM  5 Comments

As I explained in a previous entry on Tuesday, I’ve made the decision to leave the world of Apple mobile devices for the land of Google Android. To briefly bring you up to speed:

Ever since the iPhone supported Exchange, I’ve been a huge supporter. I’ve spent two good years on the iOS with my iPhone 3G. … When the iPhone 4 was announced, I followed the WWDC keynote with great anticipation. I ooh’d and aah’d at all the advances in design and software. … (after getting it) Taking it home that night, I started to notice something was a little off with my phone. … (antenna issues) I dropped a few calls that weekend, including one to my father who seem’d to have lost my mother, but I could make due. … The view from most of the people within the Apple world was that it was firmware related, and would be quickly fixed. Then Steve Jobs opened his mouth. … I found myself deeply disappointed in the device and the operating system. Enough so that I’ve made the switch to Android.

There, now that we’re all up-to-date, I’m happy to say that my Nexus One is activated and I’ve had the last couple days to play with it. Having had experience with many different mobile device styles and platforms, including Windows Mobile, Palm OS (the original, not the WebOS) and iPhone, I can honestly say that the Nexus One and Android OS is the best mobile experience I’ve ever had. (more…)

TV Giveaway: Lenovo A70z All-in-One PC

July 2nd, 2010 at 10:00 AM  86 Comments

The only thing we like better than getting toys to play with and review is giving those toys away!

TechVirtuoso, Lenovo, 21 other technology blogs, and Ivy Worldwide have teamed up to offer our visitors a free Lenovo A70z All-in-one PC. Each site is giving away their own computer, and this is the same machine that Frank Owen reviewed yesterday, except brand new and without his grubby fingerprints all over it! This is $1200 value that can be yours by doing two simple things!

  1. Make sure you’re following the @techvirtuoso Twitter account. (We’ll contact you via DM to let you know you’ve won)
  2. Tweet this message, exactly as it says below:
    Win a Lenovo A70z PC by following @techvirtuoso and RT this! See http://bit.ly/bRPNRI for more details. #freestufffromTV

But wait! There’s more!

As a special treat for our regular visitors, we’re giving you a second chance to enter your name into the running. All you have to do (after you do the steps above) is comment on this post and tell us what you’d do with a A70z. Would you replace your current desktop? Put it in your kitchen? Use it as a kiosk at the office? The possibilities are endless.

The contest starts NOW (July 2) and ends on Tuesday, July 6. We’ll announce a winner here on the site and on our Twitter account. We’ll contact the winner directly via Twitter DM, with information on where to send us your name, shipping address, phone number, email, etc.

There is one small catch for our visitors, we can only give this unit away to those of you who live in the US & Canada. Sorry to everyone who falls outside that area, it’s not our computer and those are the rules. We’ll get something cooked up next time that has world wide appeal.

Hardware Specs

 

  • Processor: 2.93 GHz Intel E7500 Core 2 Duo
  • Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
  • RAM: 2GB (max 4GB)
  • Display: 19 in (diagonal) Widescreen LCD, 1440 x 900, TFT active matrix
  • Graphics: Intel GMA X4500
  • Hard Drive: 320GB Serial ATA-300 7200 rpm
  • DVD-Writer
  • Webcam: 1.3 megapixel camera
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g/n
  • Ports: USB 6 ports, Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX/1000Base-T, Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm, PCI Express Mini Card
  • Dimensions & Weight: 2.9 in x 14 in x 18.6 in, 17.6 lbs

You can check out more specs and images or configure your own A70z, by visiting the Lenovo website.

More Contests

As we mentioned, we’re not the only site giving away this system. Each site will have different rules for their contents, and you’re welcome to enter as many or few of them as you like. But you can only win one system. We encourage you to enter as many times and visit these other sites.

Lenovo A70z ThinkCentre Review

July 1st, 2010 at 7:14 PM  3 Comments

When I think business class laptops, I think Lenovo Thinkpad followed by HP’s Elitebook. When I think business class desktop’s I think of HP followed by Dell. Lenovo is looking to change that.

The Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z touts it’s ease to upgrade as well as a low price point. The A70z ThinkCentre design is just what I have come to expect from Lenovo. Sturdy, simple and well designed even when it comes down to the packaging.

(more…)

Dude, I hope you didn’t get a Dell

July 1st, 2010 at 2:03 AM  No Comments

Until the last few years I was a big Dell supporter. I recommended Dell to the majority of my business clients as well as anyone looking for a home machine. At the time I had no problems with the brand and they were usually one of the low price leaders in their class. I had clients buy Servers, Monitors and Desktops without blinking an eye.

I have noticed over the years the same customers I gave my recommendation to were complaining about increased problems but I just shrugged it off. I then was given 30 machines from around 1999 – 2001 to build a temporary training class with, half HP, Half Dell. I had problems with almost each one of the Dell’s. Everything from not posting to the heat sink clip being broken. The HP’s also had a couple of issues but not near as many as the Dell’s.

I thought at the time it might have been a coincidence, until my company decided to buy 500 off lease Dell GX260’s for a fresh build out. I was horrified, not because they were Dell’s but because they were old and ratty. We made due with what we were given and put them out to production and have seen nothing but issues. Everything from BIOS batteries going out to smoke coming out of the power supply. We have between 4 – 6 of these off lease Dell’s go bad every month and at least 2 of them have “caught fire” from the power supply.

Now I hear that Dell knowingly covered up that they sold faulty motherboards? Not just one or two, but 11.8 million!  How can I recommend for anyone to get a Dell product when they try to sweep this under the rug? How am I to know that they didn’t cover up a faulty power supply design in the GX260’s that we have so many issues with and they just haven’t been caught yet?

If you are looking for a new build out of any type I would steer clear of Dell, I know I will be for quite some time.

Copyright © 2009-2011 TechVirtuoso, LLC. All trademarks are property of their respective owners.