Who said technology makes us lazy and stuck to our chairs all day? Not these guys below. I stumbled upon a group of teenagers glued to a DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) game machine at one of the local malls here in Cebu, Ayala Center Cebu. For those who are not familiar with DDR, this is when a player corresponds with the arrows with his footwork. I am not sure if you can call this “dancing”, nonetheless, it sure helps to burn off those extra calories.

The video below was taken on my Canon 550D with the 18-55mm lens at 60fps ISO 800-1600 @ 1/60:

Yes, that’s probably what you have been asking yourself during the course of the past couple of months. I got to be honest with you. I have been busy working on our business plan, which is a requirement to my Entrepreneurship course. My friends, all former IT students, and myself decided to put up a Classifieds website or portal. The Classifieds portal will allow users to post their free ads or purchase premium ads. Moreover, we will be selling banner space for companies who wish to advertise their products or services on our Classifieds website. Anyway, enough of our business plan. Let’s get back to Mango Chico!

Nonetheless, I got myself my very own laptop – Acer TimelineX 4280TG which happens to boast an 8 hour battery life. Additionally, I sold my Canon 50D and purchased a Canon 550D. Why? Let’s just say I got a bit tired of how photography is being perceived locally. It’s not a hobby anymore, however, a fad. I am getting myself into film and video. Here’s a sample of my work:

Just tell me what you guys think of it. Feel free to post a comment below.

Back on topic. I will TRY to keep you guys posted with the latest technology buzz and I will probably start posting my video work on the website too.

Stay tuned!

Greetings to all! I apologize for the lack of updates lately as I became preoccupied with our University’s enrollment for the past three weeks. The University where I am attending, the University of San Carlos Cebu, seems to be stuck in the 90′s in which they still haven’t fixed the process. Moreover, this year the administration only allowed 2 computers per department. That’s a lack of productivity in the side of enrollment as they are roughly about 3000 continuing students in the Business Administration Department. Nonetheless, this is another story which I don’t like to get myself into. It’s way too long!

Anyway, back to business again for me. I shall be updating the blog on a regular basis now. In fact I am typing out this blog post on a sample NEO B4105 laptop which I will be testing for the next coming weeks. Moreover, you can expect a review on it in the next couple of weeks! Stay tuned folks!

ASUS, the well known Taiwanese notebook company, recently showed off their upcoming notebooks, netbooks and now tablets for the coming few months. The ASUS EEE Pad EP121, it’s a tablet, will be released during the first quarter of 2011 and will boast the following specifications:

• 12″ tablet screen
• Intel Dual Core Processors
• 2GB of Ram
• Windows 7
• 16GB/32GB/64GB of SSD
• Built In 3G Capability

PRICE: $499 (P25,000)

On the other hand, ASUS will also be releasing a media targeted tablet PC. The EP101TC will feature:

• 10″ tablet screen
• with an Nvidia T20 processor,
• 512MB of Ram
• Windows 7 Embedded

PRICE: $399 (P19,000)

As we can see from the video below, the EP101TC showcases a lavish and futuristic user interface. The Asus EP101TC will probably be a direct competitor to the first generation Apple iPad. On the other hand, the Asus EP121 will be a step higher and will probably be competing against the second-generation Apple iPad.

What do you guys think? I think I might as well purchase the EP121 when it gets sold into the market. There’s more usability and functionality with it as compared to the recently launched Apple iPad such as a larger screen (12 inches), a powerful processor, a better operating system, Windows 7 and a cheaper price tag.

China was hard at work recently in manufacturing and developing a cheap competitor to the ever seemingly popular Apple iPad. This time they came out with the iPed. The iPed is currently running of Google’s Android operating system with a VIA 8505 processor (533MHZ) and 128MB of Ram. The processor is pretty slow and I doubt one can do so much with this device. I’ll pass on this!

Moreover, it has a smaller screen of 7”, up to 4GB of storage and a classic USB port. The iPed is already up for sell in several stores in China and I can bet you’ll be seeing this locally here in the Philippines. The price is roughly about $105 (USD), that’s about P5000 including the taxes and shipping rates here to the Philippines.

So you’re interested in a low quality, cheap and impractical gadget head over to China and grab it while you can! Oh and expect Apple to sue the manufacturer within the next few weeks.

I attended SM Cyberzone’s Tech fair the other week at SM City Cebu. To start off, I wasn’t pleased at how the marketing team crafted the event. In fact, I heard it wasn’t even SM’s marketing department who organized the event, even though Cyberzone is one of SM’s projects.

Nonetheless, it took me some time to figure out where the event was as it wasn’t even at SM Cyberzone, Northwing! It was situated on the ground floor of the main mall which is in fact a poor location as it doesn’t target the right market (SM Main Mall targets C and D class). However, the third party PR Company (I don’t understand why SM Marketing couldn’t handle it especially with their men power) explained that the reason behind the event not being held at SM Cyberzone, Northwing Cebu was due to the lack of space. I highly doubt that as there was much room available in the Cyberzone area during that day.

Moreover, upon inquiring on one of Samsung’s products displayed at the event, the “sales representatives” stated that they have no knowledge or background of the said product and that they were just hired for the day. According to one of them – “We were just asked to stand here”. So what’s the point of promoting your products in a “tech fair” without even providing the right personnel for the job?

The Cyberzone event consisted two Wii consoles, a few MSI laptops and sample Samsung cameras. I wasn’t at all impressed with the event. Most of the folks who were around the vicinity of the event just registered for the freebies. I can assure you that only 5% of those who registered or visited the event were influenced in purchasing one of the products there.

To be simply said, and in my outmost frankness, the event was hopeless and crap! I expect that the next time SM decides to hold a “technology fair” under its own product, SM Cyberzone, I suggest they put more effort, time, research and marketing into it. And for goodness sake place it in the right location.

During the recent Lenovo product launching I took on the chance to ask about Lenovo U1 hybrid mobile device which is in fact a laptop and a tablet in one. Users will have the ability to detach the screen from the device and continue their work on the fly. Vincent Song, a senior executive from Lenovo Singapore was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

The Lenovo U1 hybrid will be launched later this year, probably during the last quarter (Q4). The device will have two operating systems and two CPU processors on the tablet and the main laptop.

The tablet operating system is a custom developed operating system from Lenovo which is based on the Linux kernel. Moreover, a Qualcom Snapdragon with a processor clock speed of 1.0GHZ (or more) will be used on the tablet. The snapdragon can already be seen in the latest Android phones such as the Nexus One.

On the other hand, the main laptop will be using the latest Intel ULV processors with Windows 7.

The Lenovo U1 will have a price tag ranging in the $2000 mark.

Personally, that’s a little bit too expensive for a hybrid. I rather buy two or even three laptops/netbooks with that amount. I guess Lenovo just wants to be the first in the industry with this kind of product line. Let’s see how things go by the end of the year.

It was a immense night for Lenovo Philippines as they were announcing several new products which mostly included notebooks and a few all-in-one computers. Actually this is my first product launch I attended which is related to the world of technology.

The event took place at Olio Restaurant, Crossroads, Cebu City. It was jammed packed event with more than 20 people from the media, half of which were bloggers from Cebu Bloggers Society (CBS).

Anyway, back to the topic at hand. I know this what you guys have been waiting for. That night Lenovo launched a new product campaign dubbed “Make Life More Fun” in which several new products were launched under this advertising campaign.

These products included the following:

IdeaCentre A300 All-In-One Desktop

The A300 is similar to the Apple iMac which sports a 21.5 inch FULL HD monitor and Intel Core 2 Duo processor. Personally, I would have preferred to see at least an i3 processor.

IdeaPad Z460

This laptop costs P47,900 and is mostly targeted towards multimedia usage. Some of the models in the Z series are using the latest Intel Core processors which are mainly the i3, i5 and i7 processors with Nvidia graphics. Moreover, other models will be using the latest AMD Phenom II processors with ATI Mobility Radeon graphics.

Idea U460

This laptop is light and mainly used for travel purposes. It’s only an inch thick and weighs in at around 3.8 pounds. Moreover, it can be configured with the latest Intel Core i7 processor. 3G connectivity can also be added.

Lenovo V460

The V460 is mainly designed for business professionals and SMBs. These laptops will boast a fingerprint reader for additional security. Again it is using the latest Intel Core processors. This laptop will feature a 1GB dedicated graphics card.

Lenovo B460

The B460 is geared towards office and home users. Its equipped with an i5 processor and the latest NVIDIA GeForce 310M 512MB Graphics card. Moreover, RAM is supported up to 8GB.

ThinkCentre A70z

The A70z will have a starting price of P40,000. However, I am not too happy about the specifications of this machine especially with the price tag sprayed on it.

ThinkPad Edge 14” laptop

The usual ThinkPad series with the latest Intel Processors. Not much is known or was said about this product during the presentation

Prices and Availability of latest Lenovo products:

ThinkCentre A70z – P40,000 (End of May 2010)
ThinkPad Edge 14” – P40,000 (End of May 2010)
Lenovo B460 – P30,000 (June 2010)
IdeaPad V460 – P38,000 (June 2010)
IdeaPad Z460 – P47,900 (June 2010)
IdeaCenter A300 – P47,900 (June 2010)
IdeaPad U460 – P34,900 (July 2010)

SUN Broadband has officially been launched in Metro Cebu recently just last April. Moreover, if you have a 3G capable phone you would have noticed that your mobile has gone to 3G mode in some parts of Cebu City. I first noticed my signal change when I was in JY Square Mall, Lahug and at home (Lahug).

I visited the SUN Shop (Ayala Center) yesterday and found a laptop with a SUN Broadband Wireless USB dongle. I later approached the sales representative in which I was presented with several flyers outlaying the different SUN Broadband Wireless plans.

Speed and Bandwidth

As always one must know how the speed faired on any given internet connect. Well, I did a few bandwidth speed tests (www.speedtest.net) on a few local and international servers. The results are quite satisfactory for the price one is paying for. The average speed ranges from 200K to 500K – a transfer rate of 25KB/s to 60KB/s. I was a little bit disappointed with the ping times especially on the local test servers which ranged from 300ms to 500ms which is quite appalling since the servers are based locally. The same ping rate was seen on international servers which is quite normal due to the long distance.

Coverage

SUN wisely made a graphical coverage on a Google Map around Metro Cebu showing the different zones with 3G coverage. From a quick overview most of Cebu City is covered. Nonetheless, according to someone from the SUN Broadband Wireless team, Mactan will be getting 3G capabilities later next month.

Plans

There currently are three plans which one can avail of, two of which have holding periods. Here’s a summary of some of the plans:

Plan 350 Lite (P350/month)

• Free 45 hours of internet per month
• Modem not included – Pay P888 plus 2 months advance monthly service fee (P888+P700)
• No Holding Period

Easy BROADBAND (P799/month)

• Unlimited Internet
• Modem not included – Pay P888 plus 1 month advance monthly service fee (P888+P799)
• 3 months holding period with modem

Bundled Plan (P649/month)

• Unlimited Internet
• Must be bundled with a Sun Postpaid Plan
• 1 month advance monthly service fee (12 months holding period)
• FREE Modem

The plans above seem reasonable compared to its competitors SMART BRO and GLOBE TATTOO which are both P999/month. However, do note that SUN Broadband Wireless does indeed sell two prepaid options both of which cost P1895 (includes 180 hours and modem) and P2000 (Modem, P200 FREE LOAD if user loads P200 per month). Moreover, one can always go for a PREPAID SIM which only costs P50 and can easily be topped up by SBW prepaid load cards of:

P25 – 3 hours Internet (Validity – 24 hours)
P50 – 1 Day Unlimited (Validity – 24 hours)
P100 – 12 hours (Validity – 4 days)
P300 – 48 hours (Validity – 10 days)

SUN Broadband Wireless does indeed have a wide range of options to choose from in which most consumers will have a hard time deciding which package best suits them. A lot of financial calculating will have to go through for the consumer. I, myself, will probably get the SBW Sim (P50) and load it up. However, I would need to purchase myself a third party 3G/HSDPA modem. Now, where can find one of those in Cebu?

Oh and another thing. I’ll be testing out all the wireless broadband deals from the 3 networks – SMART BRO, GLOBE TATTOO and SUN Wireless Broadband in the next few days. I’ll probably start with the ever so “reliable” Smart Bro. I have a lot of positive comments on the speed and connectivity of the service. Let’s just see and wait.

If you happen to be using Smart Bro, Globe Tattoo or the newly launched SUN Broadband Wireless service, write a short review or comment on their service. I will gladly read them! Thanks for your feedback guys!

So you probably have realized I am not a big fan of the latest Apple iPad which was recently released on the market. Some of you guys have seen how the iPad looks. So what does it offer to the consumer? Here’s a quick roundup of some of the features and abilities the iPad can perform. Do note that this video was prepared by Apple themselves, so expect a biased side.

So what do you think after watching this brain-washing, i mean, convincing well-made commercial from APPLE? Do you have any plans in purchasing one in the near future? Hit a comment below!