That was Spring Break?
So this past week, I spent my Spring Break in Killeen. It went by so fast and it didn’t really feel like a break. Before the break started, the game plan was to focus primarily on work and schoolwork. Unfortunately, everything didn’t seem to go as planned. At the same time, a few upsets were thrown into the mix. Let’s sum it all up.
The Good
Being able to see old Killeen buddies throughout the week was probably the best thing about my break. I’m glad that I was able to catch up with people like Raymond and Matt, who stay in San Antonio and Houston respectively. Not only them, but also Jasmin, Green, Ana, Dustin, Thomas, Devo, Krystle, co-workers, and the Killeen Town Brawlers crew. It was great to see all of them again. Since my life seems to revolve around friends at College Station these days, seeing all of them was like taking a small peek into a time capsule. It’s also great to be around my mother as well as my sister Eunice. I’m not a confident Korean speaker, but I tend to speak more Korean when I’m around my mother these days. She constantly spends her time studying English pronunciation, I should at least do the same for her native language. Throughout the past few summers, I’ve tried to commit time to become fluent in Korean and failed every single time. I want to try and make it work this summer. Being close to mom makes me want to try to become more fluent in Korean by Fall 2011.
I also worked close to 40 hours at Geek Squad during the break. The workload was really insane and it looked like they could really use the help. I’m just glad that I was there to do so. Managers constantly kept thanking me for helping the store, but should they really be? I’m a full-time college student who is able to focus all of my time on studies without having to work. At any period of time, I am able to return home and work as if I had never left. And it’s not even a bad job either. I repair computers and make a decent wage. How many students even have that kind of power and flexibility? Not many. The managers shouldn’t be thanking me, I should be thanking them. My employment with the Killeen Best Buy alone is enough to be thankful for. It really helped make a difference while living in College Station, and I don’t even need to work for their location either.
Phones are cool
There is nothing special or interesting about this picture. I am posting it for no reason at all.
On a side note, my phone was stolen today, but I got it back.
Review: HTC Incredible
After having my LG Dare for only about a year and a half, the cells in the battery began to swell and the phone was unable to hold a charge for over two minutes. Coincidentally, it started doing this just as the HTC Incredible was about to be released and I was eligible for a new phone upgrade. Talk about good timing! The phone was $199 after a mail-in rebate (which I received not too long ago) plus an additional $50 off for upgrading, bringing the price of this Android-powered mobile powerhouse down to a mere $149.99! I’ve had this device for nearly a month and I figure it’s best that I pitch in my two cents about it before it becomes overshadowed by the superior and (ironically) incredible HTC EVO 4G.
The Hardware
Physically speaking, the phone is gorgeous. My Incredible is pictured here with the slide-in holster/case combo offered by Verizon ($29.99) and Boxwave ClearTouch Crystal screen protector ($12.95). The build quality is sturdy and tough, something that is usually always expected from a flagship HTC handset. Anybody who has been following the device will know that it sports a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, 8GB of internal storage, 748MB of ROM, a microSD slot (supports up to 32GB cards), an 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash/autofocus, and a clear, vibrant 480 x 800 Samsung AMOLED capacitive touchscreen. The entire bottom has a rubber coating which will withstand most minor scratches, but I would still recommend buying a case to protect it. Without a case, the phone rests on the extended camera lens when laid flat. Moving the phone around while in this position could cause some damage and scratching to the camera lens. The problem can be prevented with a case, as it would raise the position of the camera lens and prevent it from coming into contact with the surface. On the sides of the phone, you’ll find the power button, 3.5mm headphone jack, volume buttons, a micro-usb connector, and microphone. Along with the capacitative buttons under the screen, the device also features an optical trackpad instead of a trackball which you’ll usually find in other HTC handsets. Unfortunately, I find that using the optical trackpad is a bit more frustrating than using a trackball or directional pad, especially when it comes to certain applications and games.
The Software
As this is my first Android-powered handset, I had no experience using the Android platform prior to buying the phone. A month later and I’m completely hooked to it. The Sense UI by HTC is a very nice implementation which makes the Android experience feel iPhone-like in almost every aspect. It’s clean, polished, and thanks to the powerful hardware it runs on, it runs very fast with extremely little or no lag. Menus, animations, transitions, etc. all run smoothly on the device. The only time that I’ve experienced slowdown on the device was when it was opening an SMS conversation of over 1100 messages, but it still opened it all in a reasonable amount of time, considering what was being loaded. Though I can pretty much wrap my hand around it, I still have much to learn about the Android platform as a whole. I’ll probably steer away fom rooting the device. Playing around with the Android SDK can be pretty fun. With the recent release of Android 2.2 Froyo for the Nexus One, I wonder how long it will be before HTC releases it for the Incredible, considering that they may focus on pushing it out for the EVO 4G first. Below you’ll find a small gallery of screenshots and camera shots from the phone so that you can get a good idea of how the UI looks.
Wrap-up
In a nutshell, the HTC Incredible is hands-down possibly the best Android handset you can get while riding on Verizon’s airwaves. If you’re able to choose your carrier, then the upcoming release of the EVO 4G from Sprint may be a phone you might want to look into instead. But if you’re stuck in Verizon’s clutches, the Incredible is the way to go if you’re wanting to join the Android party.
BTW, the HTC Calendar widget sucks and has some major issues.
Review: LG Dare
So one day, I was looking at my Sprint Sanyo Katana and I said to it: “Mr. Katana, we’ve had some great times together for the past two years. But now, you’re just really ticking me off. I can’t hear you when somebody calls me and your vibration is DEAD. I’m sorry to say this but… I’m gonna have to let you go…” With a sigh of despair, my Katana disapeared into thin air… (or I gave it to my mom) and then I bought a Dare! :)