Falling in Love again (with Nokia N9... Meego Wonder)

Hello again everyone... So I had to do a few errands today and since I finished up early I went to my cell phone provider to check up on things and... there it was, the Nokia N9!

Since I was out of contract, I decided to renew it and on the way pick up this phone. I figured that I would try it out for a few weeks and get like +300% by selling the phone on eBay (as these sell for 350+ dollars used) but herein lies the problem, I'M LIKING IT!!! lol!!!

SPECS:

Display: AMOLED capacitive touchscreen (Gorilla Glass), 16M colors
Size: 480 x 854 pixels, 3.9 inches (~251 ppi pixel density)
Memory: 16 GB storage, 1 GB RAM
Pentaband (so works on T-Mobile, AT&T, etc.
Data: GPRS Class 33, EDGE Class 33
Speed: HSDPA, 14.4 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.7 Mbps
Extra Connections: WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth, NFC, USB
Camera: 8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, dual LED flash, OS: MeeGo OS, v1.2 Harmattan
Internals: TI OMAP 3630, 1 GHz Cortex A8 CPU, PowerVR SGX530 GPU, Accelerometer, proximity, compass, etc.

Hardware-wise seems pretty standard compared to most phones on the market and even to my current one, a Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro (Android) but what has always set Nokia apart from most companies, phone build! This cell phone is built like a tank and looks just completely gorgeous (compared to the plastic, squeaky Sony, it completely kills it!!) So it might be similar spec-wise to others but man oh man, it's really a lovely phone.

Since I'm a weirdo, I didn't take the black version of the phone and they didn't have the white one (which looks killer!) so I went with cyan! (my current one is red hahaha).

I wont be delving into all of the features or a full-fledge review though, for that you can actually trust professionals and take a look at: GSMArena Nokia N9 review But I will offer my hands-on views and opinions on it on these few hours (10 of usage).

Pros:

* Great Build, lovely color
* Feels light
* 8MP Camera with Carl Weiss optics
* MeeGo OS has been a good experience up till now
* No crashes or slowdowns detected
* Call quality is good
* Comes with a cool rubber casing (same color as the phone)

Cons:

* No Expandable memory (comes with 16GB or 64GB)
* No removable battery
* MeeGo no longer completely supported
* Not as many good apps as Android or iOS
* microSim (I have to get an adapter if I want to use my Ericsson now!)
* Swipe takes a bit getting used to (no buttons, all touch-screen)
* No QWERTY (I LOVE ME SOME PHYSICAL QWERTY ACTION! :-p)

It seems that the list of cons is actually larger but don't get me wrong, I'm loving this phone and most of the cons are nitpicks. For example the memory... I have +32GB on my Sony Ericsson phone and I'm not even using 1/4 of that. Apps? Baaah! I usually use like 10 apps and I have most of them (or similar ones) on the MeeGo Nokia so it's Ok. The only thing I miss is the physical QWERTY (I don't like writing on touch-screens) and what really bugs me is the non-removable battery... not sure how much it will last with me using it as I use phones (never off!)

I have to say it right now, I HATE the Android experience! Why? Because it actually reminds me of a PC and not a phone... Maybe it's my Ericsson, but I've seen others, I've seen the "Force Closes", I've seen the sluggishness. It's weird that you need a dual-core CPUs now in phones in order for them to run correctly. That my friends is poor programming lol! Anyway, I don't really like it that much. In fact, I liked my Windows Mango experience better! It just seems more like a social Hub and not an "app" executing device. I'm glad to say that MeeGo does it right! As of now I have not experienced any crashes, slowdowns I saw one when using the Web Browser on a "busy" page (www.head-fi.org) other than that, flawless. Turned on the phone, set up Bluetooth to get my Contacts from the Ericsson phone, added my Google, Facebook and Twitter accounts and voila, up and running great. Updated my Nokia account (still active since I was using a Nokia E71 not too long ago), and I have the phone set-up SIMILARLY to my Android phone. You might be asking: "what do you mean by that?" Well, I'm not really an Android "power user", I just use:

- Facebook

- Plume (Twitter)

- FourSquare

- Get Glue

- Sygic (Turn by Turn GPS app)

- Pandora

- YouTube

- Wifi Hotspot app

- Dolphin HD browser

and I guess that's it.

On the MeeGo OS, I have most of those and the ones I don't have, you can access the web page and actually PIN IT AS AN APP on the Home screen so it works similarly to an app on Android!! So I'm not missing my Android phone at all! Nokia Drive seems like a great option and the "tethering" is working great (using the phone hotspot app right now to post this!)

I find that their "Timeline" feature is very similar to the Windows experience which I absolutely adore! On Android you have to have different apps for different social networks. Or you can download an app to have a "hub" with all of your accounts. On the MeeGo, your e-mail, your Facebook feed, your Twitter timeline is all in one place! LOVE IT!

I do have to say that having NO buttons is kind of weird! lol The "Swype" actions do Ok, but I guess I just need to get used to them. It'sd innovative though, something Android nor Windows nor even iOS has done and this is actually weird coming from Nokia of all places. Love the minimalistic design on the phone and on the OS.

Too bad MeeGo will not continue but at least the phone design does live on with Nokia Lumia phones (their Windows offerings). My next phone will definitely be another Nokia but hopefully they will create one with a physical QWERTY... I have faith on that! :-p

The most difficult thing for me now is:

1) Do I keep the phone and sell my Sony Ericsson on eBay?

2) Do I sell the phone (once I get my microSim to Sim card) and keep the Android?

And this is going to be hard. It's really something when you just spend less than a day with a phone and already want to keep it over a phone you've had more than 3 months! Nokia always wins me over (even if they don't always make it right! -- Still hate the fact that they will be all Microsoft loving whores now! Damn you Elop!! LOL!!!)

Conclusion:

So I'm going to try and kick the phone's ass all that I can these coming weeks and finally decide what to do but, again, I'm in love...

Let's see what time will tell... I'll update you guys with any news later! ;-)

Bye!

Audio Technica ATH-900X review -- Winners or Losers?

Pros: Comfortable similar to AD700s, great sound balance, bass extends well, sturdy.
Cons: Pads (pleather) don't feel that great. Barebone package, no extras and no detachable cable.




Introduction:
So a couple of years ago I started getting more into "audiophilia" by buying my first "real" headphones, the Shure 440s. From there on it has all gone downhill. My ears have taken a hit, my wallet has taken a hit, I no longer have a lot of space to store all my stuff and every time I see reviews or hear something about headphones I can't wait to try them...

Anyway, this new addiction has really hit me hard and although I wasn't really looking for new headphones I got the "itch"... so I ordered a COUPLE of them just for comparison purposes with the cans I already have. Ordered the Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO 80s and these beauts....

Audio-Technica A900X
What can I say about these?

These headphones look great. They sport an all-black motif with white lettering and silver accents on the plastic outer casing. It seems to be a fingerprint magnet even though you might think that that matte finish should not be doing that. It's really similar to their previous A900 model so it has the Double Air Damping System (or DADS), 53mm drivers and sport, of course, their 3D Wing support which actually is what I loved from their AD700 (so comfy!!!). Given that, I find the earpads not that good. They are kind of stiff. Probably with time they will get better but not sure about that (they will definitely not be as good as the D5000 ones, and of course, I also prefer the velour pads from the SRH940). Clamping is actually quite good but I can see how some people might find it problematic given the stiffness of the earpads. Isolation seems to be good, though I haven't tested for sound leakage yet. (soon) All in all, headphone feels good NOT great.



Stats:
* Transducer type: Closed Dynamic Neodymium magnet

* Driver size: 53mm, Bobbin winding OFC voice coil

* Sensitivity (1kHz): 100 dB/mW

* Impedance (1kHz): 42 Ω

* Max. input power (1kHz): 2000 mW

* Frequency range” 5 Hz - 40 kHz

* Type of cable: non-detachable

* Cord length: 3.0m (Wrapping / Hi-OFC) --> similar to the Denons, not as thick

* Net weight (without cord): 350g

* Plug: Gold-plated 1/8" (3.5 mm) stereo mini jack


Package Contents:
* 1/4th adapter

... that's it! :-(


Sound:
And here we go... I tell you what I expected from these. I expected my Shure 940s but with more low-end. I mean looking at the stats they were pretty similar so I just took a chance and I'm glad to say that it's ALMOST what I expected! If you have read any of my comments or reviews, I don't REALLY believe in "burn-in". Even though internals MIGHT probably change with the cans getting a workout, I usually go the way of "your ears get used to the sound" rather than getting in any engineering talk or assumptions.
Anyway, left the cans playing for 10 hours straight at work (while I listened with my usual D5000s) and when I got home, plugged them in and played my usual "headphone testing" playlist. It consists of:

DJ Hero 2 Soundtrack - Twist Jamrock Out
Kaskade - One Heart
Shiny Toy Guns - Ricochet!
Jon Cleary - When you Get back
Skrillex - First of the Year (Equinox)
Mima - Oigo Voces
Ben Jorgensen - Changed my mind
Skrillex - Amplifire
Miguel Bose and Leonor Watling - Este Mundo Va
Killswitch Engage - Fixation on the Darkness
Thursday - Turnpike Divides
Emery - The Anchors
Esperanza Spalding - What a Friend
Sara Bareilles - Vegas

and a couple extras such from Salsa and Merengue singers such as

Karis - Bandolera
Marc Anthony, etc.



Connection: PC --> USB connection to Icon HDP Dac/Amp --> Headphones
Played CDs and MP3s

From the first track (Damian Marley --> Twist Jamrock Out) I knew I would like the headphones. The A900x exhibited a really full sound. I mean, Highs were mot ear-piercing, Bass wasn't so overpowering and I enjoyed the track from beginning to end. A quick comparison on the same track with my other cans:

SRH940: Definitely crisper highs. Bass extends really well even though overall these are "bass-light" but on some sections it's really lacking.

D5000: Bass KINGS!!! Highs are tamed compared to both ATs and Shures. Bass is the best of the three and personally I enjoy this track more with the Denons.

I went through the whole playlist a couple of times, pausing and exchanging headphones, making notes, etc. and I have to say, I AM IMPRESSED. Everything I threw at it from acoustic to Metal to Salsa was reproduced great! I noticed what the difference between these and the SRH940s rather quick. It actually made me sad that I enjoyed the SRH940s so much!! LOL. I still do, don't get me wrong, but for some genres, the 940s get their arses kicked so bad!! Take for instance a track like "Amplifire" by Skrillex, on the 940s it sounds so... bland! On the A900X it sounds powerful, it sounds full, it... it makes you want to dance! The D5000s of course, makes the ATs look bad on the same track but I was surprised that I enjoyed it equally on both!

Summary, Highs are Ok (not as great as the 940s and actually similar to the D5000s to my ears.).

Mids are great here! They actually reminded me of the HD600s but not as good (but it's "there...").

Bass definitely on another level when compared to the 940s. Compared to the D5000s, totally lacking.

Soundstage was a bit similar to that of the Shures so although it's not as constricted like, let's say, the famous AT M50s, they don't reach the levels of the D5000s nor HD600 (again, to my ears!)



If I were to order these closed cans by preference.

Comfort: D5000s --> SRH940 --> A900X

Build: A900X --> D5000s --> SRH940

Sound Quality: D5000s --> A900X --> SRH940s

Contents: SRH940 --> D5000 == A900x

Finally, these headphones seem easier to drive than the D5000s. I connected them to my laptop and my Archos PMP and they sounded great. Also used my JDSLabs c421 for a bit and it also sounded quite tasty! ;-)

Conclusion:

Really a "tuff" choice! I love the sound produced by these headphones! They excel in most/every genre I threw at it (I did not test classical BTW...) and are fun sounding. Not once I felt the need to stop listening, or do adjustments, etc. BUT a couple of things bother me:

1) Earpads REAAAALLY suck. Maybe I'm used to the Denons, or the Shures but I expected more I guess...

2) PRICE! These guys are retailing for $270 (with shipping) straight from Japan. Seriously, I don't see it. Yes the headphones sound good, and seem to be built to last but lets compare the Shures (priced similarly) to the ATs:

Shure extras: Replaceable velour ear pads, Two included detachable cables (coiled & straight), Zippered hard travel case

AT extras: NOTHING.

I know sound is everything, but come on! I could recommend these with more enthusiasm if they were priced at $170 or something like that.



Anyway, like I just mentioned, it will all boil down to sound... if the cold, analytical nature of something like the SRH940s (or KRKs 8400) are not your bag, you could look into cans with similar signature as the ATs (Beyers have not arrived yet, so I will update this once I get them...)

If they break apart, would I buy them again?
Not sure (it will depend on whether the pads become softer with use).


Hope you liked this mini-review.

Some bonus pics…

LG Quantum C900 -- My Windows QWERTY Phone wonder

Introduction

As you have probably learned from the couple of posts here or at Twitter, etc. I LOVE NOKIA!!! I have owned a Nokia since College, in fact, Nokia has been in my family since I was a young'un. After all these years we have seen the prominence of different makers giving us great phone offerings but what really changed the landscape was software. Symbian had been long used by Nokia and others, there was of course, the BB environment, Palm, Windows but it wasn't until those fuckers at Apple let loose the iPhone with their iOS that people really started to not only buy phones because of their looks or quality but because of their functionality.

After a few years supporting Nokia and Symbian I noticed that I was really left behind. The emergence of the Android platform and Apple selling a gazillion phones and updating their iOS with better features every time prompt me to try and go into other ventures.

Of course, I was/am planning to stay loyal to Nokia but:

1) They are still on Symbian whether is 'Anna' or 'Belle' or any other update with a new nickname
2) Their Windows phones and other flagships (such as the N9 with its MeeGo) are not here yet or they are extremely expensive so I decided, since I'm pretty sure I'm going to be back to Nokia, to try one Windows phone. I chose the LG Quantum C900 from AT&T (unlocked of course!)




Specifications:

So quickly a couple of specs for this phone:

Display: TFT capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 480 x 800 pixels, 3.5 inches (~267 ppi pixel density)
(No super AMOLED or any of those fancy screens, but it's Ok.)

It also features:

- QWERTY keyboard
- Gorilla glass display
- Multi-touch input method
- Accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate
- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
- 16GB storage, 512 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM NO SD CARD slot
- 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
- 1 GHz Scorpion processor, Adreno 200 GPU, Qualcomm QSD8650 Snapdragon chipset

and of course the assortment of GPS, Bluetooth, WiFi, etc.





One of the most important things I was looking for was a QWERTY phone. I'm just used to them and using the E71 for over 2 years just spoiled me! The LG Quantum has a GREAT keyboard (this is compared to the Samsung T-Mobile Sidekick and the Sony
Ericsson Xperia Pro) and it feels great. I really love text messaging and status updates in Facebook and Twitter. With this phone I feel like I can write better and more comfortable.

Phone calls are quite clear. The volume of the headset is perfect and although the quality is not super great, it does the job. Up till now, no dropped phone calls and can take GPS, 3G signals very quickly.

Tried Wifi at home and phone is awesome.

Overall, A grade on the hardware!



What's in ther Box:

1) LG Quantum C900 phone with Battery
2) USB data cable / phone charger
3) Cheapo headphones
4) and that's it (bought this on eBay lol!!)


Software:

Now, the reason for me buying this phone was basically for this. I wanted to experience a phone with Windows and Android. After much looking, I decided on this one. First thing I did once I got it? Updated it to Windows Mango. Now, what are the differences between the stock software and Mango? I don't even have a clue but since Mango/7.5 was a big update I guess a lot of good things came with it.

Anyway, coming from the lacking Symbian OS (lacking in the sense of accessibility, looks, etc.), Windows was a kick in the ass. First thing you see is the Live Tiles. It's really something! Got any text message notifications? The "Messaging" tile will tell you without you looking. Have any hotmail messages? Gmail? Facebook notifications? ALL of them show up in the tiles. Pretty nifty. In order to do the same with my Nokia E71, I had to actually navigate menus and select what I wanted to see. Not on this. In fact, the best feature I find with this phone is the INTEGRATION
of everything. Have calendar entries in Gmail or hotmail? They will synchronize with the phone. Have any calendar/event entries in Facebook? They will syncrhonize with the phone. Want to post a status update? You can do hotmail and Facebook at the same time, etc. etc. It really does integration well (not sure about iOS but at least is better than what I have experienced with Android)



Apart from that, the marketplace looks Ok and I have downloaded a couple of apps and games to fully test the phone. Of course I downloaded Twitter and Facebook apps but I also downloaded the ever essential "Weather" app, IMDB, a Turn by Turn Navigation to fully test the GPS (although the "Maps" application seems to work a-Ok!), QR reader, YouTube and all of the Office apps work great. Especially love "Notes"... just a basic app like a "sticky note" that is also available online and sincronizes
automatically.

Everything seems organized, easy to access unlike Symbian and Android, it really seems like an easy to approach OS.

I'm really pleasantly surprised!!


Performance:

What can I say? As of now I really have not experienced slowdowns or anything of that nature. No applications closing by themselves (Hello Android 'Force Closes'...), no jerkiness in games or when using most apps. The only thing I noticed was when visiting really "loaded" web pages, the internet browser (IE) seemed to slow a little... the same with the Seesmic Twitter app. Other than that it has been
great (definitely better than Symbian on the E71).

Now to one of my quirks... battery life.
My Nokia E71 could go on for at least 2 or 3 days without recharging... but these days it seems that trying to have everything accessible takes a toll on battery life. For example, all of the tiles that need updating, connect via 3G or Wifi in order to be updated. Add to that the big display, the processor and normal usage
for the phone has been more or less 15 to 20 hours. This is of course with just:

- Light internet surfing
- A couple of calls (I don't talk much)
- Facebook/Twitter updates and news reading
- Engadget App
- E-mail viewing/sending

That means that I have to go into the settings and change the sincronizing to "Manual". If I do that, I can have the phone lasting much more than 24 hours. But lets be real, if we have an updated phone be it iOS, Android or Windows, we want them to be performing with all those things active! ;-)

I guess it's a trade-off, you decide whether it's worth it ;-)


Camera:

Now, this is supposed to be a 5MP camera that records video at 720p, etc. etc. but I haven't had much time with it yet so I wont judge it. It SHOULD be better than the 3.2 one on my Nokia but I'll try to do a direct compare with the 8MP Exmor sensor of my Android headset (Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro, review soon)





Conclusion:

What do I think of the LG Quantum C900? I believe it's a great phone. The QWERTY keyboard works perfect, it's snappy, the Windows 7.5 OS behaves well and offers the best profile integration I've experienced yet. Now that I've experienced Windows, I'm really thinking of selling my Android phone... is that good!
But who knows... maybe I'll stick with both for a bit.

Pros:

+ Great social integration, you feel like you can really communicate
+ Good call quality, Great QWERTY keyboard feel
+ Not sluggish (at least for what I use it for)
+ Office Notes is awesome

Cons:

- Plastic all around (I was spoiled by Nokia!)
- Sometimes in Landscape mode some apps don't rotate (to properly use QWERTY)
- Battery life is not the greatest
- Small font for "Messages" app

All in all I give it:

3.5 out of 5!

;-)


See ya!


P.S. I'll post some more updates after I keep playing with it! ... with the phone guys... the phone!! :-p

LG Optimus C900 with Windows or Sony Xperia Pro with Android? Or both?!?

So finally, after all of these years staying true to Nokia and Symbian, I'm ready to "jump ship" (FOR A BIT!!!). Question is... should I go Android? Or should I go Windows?

Since I didn't know the answer to this question, I decided to try both at the same time. Being the compulsive buyer that I am, I began the search. Let me get this straight though, I AM PARTIAL TO NOKIA! There I said it! Why? Because they make reliable phones, built like Tonkas and they perform well for the use I give the handsets but the thing is, they are way behind. MeeGo was supposed to change all that but that ASS of a CEO Stephen Elop messed it up for everybody because EVERY ONE IN THE INDUSTRY know that he is just an MS whore... so now Nokia is going with Windows OS too.

Anyway, my experience with the green robot has been limited to my time with a cheap Archos 70 tablet which I already sold.



It performed well enough, and did most of what I wanted it too so my guess is that the phone should perform AT LEAST as good as my ex-tablet. The search for a phone was a particular one. Why? Because:

1) It needed to be an "unlocked" handset
2) It needed to have "Ok" Specifications (Android OS likes power...)
3) It needed to provide hardware QWERTY

That last option narrowed down the selection at least but still it was difficult choosing! Should I go with an Unlocked Motorola Droid? A Milestone? A Droid Pro? Should I try HTC with their Desire Z? Should I go Samsung Epic? But then I started seeing their prices... ufff... mighty expensive for most of them! Since I know I wanted 2 phones, I didn't want to exceed myself... you see, I'm a compulsive buyer with a conscience... or maybe I'm just not that dumb! ;-)

So first I tried: Samsung Sidekick 4G



Let me tell you, the QWERTY keyboard was AWESOME.
Buttons felt great and the unit was quite responsive and felt "zippy". Specifications were not that hot (i.e. middle of the pack) but for $200 unlocked I wasn't complaining... when I did started to complain was when I was seeing the icon for "EDGE" instead of 3G and then it hit me... THIS IS A PHONE BUILT FOR T-MOBILE!!! What does that mean? That my current cellphone provider (Claro Puerto Rico) operates on a different 3G band than T-Mobile! (Claro is similar to AT&T and uses 850/1900/2100 whereas T-Mobile uses 1700/2100).

A big FAIL for me.
So I decided to resell the phone on eBay (let's see how it goes! But it should sell easy!! ;-)) and started looking for more options.

I had in mind a Motorola Droid Pro, Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro (the new version, not the X10 one) and a few others. Weighing things out I eliminated most of them and was ready to select the Xperia Mini Pro due to the form factor, Android 2.3, and good reviews.



Beautiful looking, good construction and from the reviews, good performance and great all-rounder. Price was right too (about $250 maybe even less unlocked on eBay). Then I kept reading and found this:

http://talk.sonyericsson.com/thread/22121

Remember when I said I'm not an "eyes-closed" compulsive buyer? Yep. When I decide to get something I start to look everywhere for issues, problems, praises, etc. I thought this was a big issue for me so... back to square one. Since I didn't want to go through the whole ordeal of looking for phones, I remembered I had read about this phone's big brother, the Xperia Pro!

Up I went then to amazon, eBay, different distributors looking for the cheapest way to get one and eBay was the one that in the end had it for the better price... I still ended up paying upwards to $300 (in which I could have probably gotten a Milestone from Moto, or the HTC Desire Z, etc.) but I decided to go different because less face it, most people have the same type of phone... you know, the rectangular black one, nothing different, etc. I went against the current and got this beauty:




Plastic, but... oh well...

Looking in GSMArena for the specifications I found that this phone, apart from being good-looking, had Ok specs (i.e. no dual core CPU here), and a great camera. So killed two birds with one stone. The QWERTY looked more spaced out than on the Mini Pro and I liked the form-factor. The couple of reviews I looked at gave it good remarks so I guess I'll know once I receive it. The bad thing is that since this phone was just released on October, there are no cases or accessories. :-(

Still, I want to see how it performs and I will probably review it in the coming weeks!!! This will satisfy my phone needs for now but...

WHAT ABOUT WINDOWS?!?!

Well, fully knowing that Nokia will indeed focus on this OS, I decided to try it and see what Nokia might have seen... the potential.

Looking for a Windows phone is easier as really, there aren't many and a WinPhone with QWERTY is an easier assignment. So after little search I decided to get: LG Optimus C900




Since selection was not that great (the only one on my radar was the Dell Venue Pro but like with the Xperia Mini Pro, it seems to have A LOT of bugs and hardware related issues so out of the picture it went...) I got this generic black/gray-colored looking thing! ;-) It's not the sexiest looking thing ever but it will do I guess.

This one also has run-of-the-mill specifications but I guess it's typical in the Winphone realm. The best thing about this one is that I bought an unlocked "Open Box" one for like $130 or less! w00t!!!!

Now, for both of them I bought some screen protectors and for the LG I bought a case to see if at least I can give it some fucking color (mostly all of my phones haven't been generic-looking... I hate that shit!).

I'll see if one or both of them come this week and start testing changing between phones whenever their batteries run out and see what is my experience with both!

Will Android have random applications Force Closing?
Will Windows crash all the time?
Will both offer great communication features and I'll be happy?

Still don't know the answer to this question and a couple more but I do have to say that I'll be saying Good-Bye to Nokia this week...



ok ok ok... It's probably going to be more of a "see you soon" instead of a goodbye but Nokia, I do have to say that you will always be my friend. GET YOUR SHIT STRAIGHT!!!!

In the meantime I'll be enjoying some Windows/Android cooking and see what all the fuzz is about. And to fully say goodbye to Nokia, I will definitely sell for cheap my Nokia E71!!! Someone has to keep on enjoying it as I did! Great little phone!


Bye.
Thanks for reading.


P.S. I'm not the owner of these pictures... taken from the web :-p. I guess I'll put mine up sometime this week.

#HorrOctober ...

was a failure!!! LOL!!!

I did not list more movies because I didn't watch the stipulated 31 movies I was supposed to see! WHY DO I HAVE TO GO TO WORK AND DO OTHER THINGS?!? WHY?!?!

Anyway, partial list of what I did see:

1) Final Destination
2) A Blade in the dark
3) The Mist (new version)
4) The Stand
5) The Exorcism of Emily Rose
6) Dawn of the Dead (remake)
7) Jeepers Creepers
8) Bruiser
9) Audition
10) Hostel part II
11) Black Sheep
12) The Rite

and... that's it!
I have to get better organized next year!!

Anyway... check it!

Mima: El Pozo --> Mini review/reseña ...

Hace un tiempo atrás estaba “janguiando” con un pana del trabajo en su apartment ready pa quema.... erm... una sesión de Rock Band y PS3 "geekyness" y me dice: "Mano, tengo música nueva en ese Pen Drive... a lo mejor te gusten par..."

So, me lleve el pen drive, lo puse en la “compu” y veo que un Folder se llama "Mima"... Por un momento pensé que era un folder que contenía "porno" (hehehe) pero cuando vi y le di play (aparte de la decepción de que NO era porno ;-)) fui totalmente transportado a otros mundos y así fue como descubrí a Yarimir Caban o simplemente Mima.



Su primer CD es sencillamente una de las mejores producciones que yo he escuchado de artistas del patio en cuanto a calidad musical, interpretación, ambientación, etc. Aunque sus letras son un poco "artsy" y poéticas (yo soy muy cafre para seguir muchas de ellas... :-p) todas las canciones del disco se sentían originales y brindaban (al menos a mí) una sonrisa al escucharlas. Fui "fan" automáticamente.

Como todo un "fan", fui a varias de sus presentaciones a cantar como "loquita" y veía que a la gente, aunque no eran muchos, gozaban de sus canciones y de las interpretaciones con su grupo musical. Así que cuando escuche que iba a tirar una producción nueva me puse mas feliz que un cisne con dos lagos!



Hace varias semanas, gracias a Puerto Rico Indie, me entere que en la UPR Mima presentaría/vendería su CD nuevo. Entre a su pagina, le envié un e-mail por medio de "la tiendita Mima" a cualquiera que estaba encargado (quizás hasta el mismo Mark Underwood... chequeare mi email...) y le pedí un invoice para el CD nuevo Y el viejo también. A los varios días, el CD era mío!!!

Del primer "playthrough" lo único que me dije fue:

"QUE CARAJO ES ESTO?!?!?!?!?!"

Que le paso a mi Mima juguetona?!
Que le paso a mi Mima brasilera?!?
Que le paso a las canciones pegajosas como Santo Camino Furtivo y Menos mal que no?
Por que hostia hizo otra versión de mi canción favorita, Ojo Avizor?

AARRRGHHHHH!!!!
He estado esperando anos para esto?!?!

Pero yo me conozco... me pasa lo mismo con muchos artistas y discos. Lo mismo me pasó con Taking Back Sunday, Armor for Sleep, Mew, etc. y después de varios "listens" como que yo mismo caía en tiempo, prestaba mas atención y terminaban gustándome.



Asi que tranquilo en mi casa, puse el CD en la compu, prendí mi Nuforce Icon HDP, connecté mis Sennheisers HD600 y le di "Play". Sinceramente en cuanto a la instrumentación e ingenuidad, las canciones son un A+!!! No se como puedan hacer todo en vivo pero la grabación esta súper completa. Me encanto la percusión en sus canciones y los efectos "lo-fi". Fui canción por canción primero analizando y después
escuchando y aquí me di cuenta de varias cosas. Pero primero,


En la Carretera: Comienza con un corito "eerie" q por poco hace que me cagara encima! hehehe Una guitarrita con un poco de "Wah" y medio psicodélica con la percusión perfecta. El mood en la canción es totalmente diferente al primer CD! Creo que es una canción excelente para comenzar el disco por que básicamente te dice: "Sip, así es el CD completo... totalmente experimental, un poco "Worldly" en cuanto a tiempo para que los músicos se luzcan en la instrumentación, con efectos por todos lados y lento con cojones!"

Así que si no les gusta esta canción, no les va a gustar el CD (mi opinión por supuesto!)

Seguimos con:

El Pozo o la Tumba: Definitivamente una de las canciones favoritas para mi. Seguimos con el sonido "dark" e "eerie". No se que acordes están tocando con la guitarra acústica (los buscaría pero.. meeeh!) pero me encanta la progresión! Nuevamente, efectos medio psicodélicos, percusión diferente a la canción inicial, un poco "sparce" pero igual de efectivo. Me encanta como Mima canta: "Yo estoy cavando este hoyo, si no me sirve de tumba. Llegara el día de mí
suerte y encontrare el agua profunda...". Para mi la canción es súper efectiva pero nuevamente el mood es totalmente diferente al CD original.

Como en un anuncio: De todo el CD esto debe ser la canción más "comercial" (ni tanto... pero vamos!). Es un punk/garage/lo-fi rock anthem. El que escuche el CD y no se pompee, le doy un puno en la cara!!!! Esta buena la canción... y ya puse una línea como estatus de Facebook: "Es que hay demasiadas cervezas por beber, demasiados negocios que atender para yo ponerme a componer..." En realidad no estoy componiendo por vago!!! Pero ven! Siempre hay excusas! HAHAHAHA

Damen: Aquí se pone buena la cosa. A sonido de buena percusión quizás un estilito medio Hip Hop, sonidos de vientos, efectos (nuevamente) y la tremenda interpretación de Mima, esta canción esta muy buena (otra de mis favoritas). CREO que como que había escuchado una versión de esta canción antes pero no recuerdo. Anyway, no hay mucho que decir. Si hay que escuchar otra canción que "define" al Caribe rítmicamente, debería ser esta.

La Parusía: Regresamos al ritmo monótono con un "corito que nunca termina", diferentes efectos de percusión y... mas nada... Canción mega aburrida y viajera. Quizás si me arrebato, me gusta...

Oigo Voces: El ritmo vuelve a adquirir velocidad al ritmo de aplausos con un bajo bien decente. Esta canción es como un hibrido de hip-hop con funk/soul. Otra de las mejores del CD y es la única canción que yo diría q tiene un coro súper pegajoso... bueno, la canción completa es MEGA pegajosa. Considero que del CD esta es el "Santo Camino Furtivo"... totalmente "likeable".

La princesa: Este tema es bien "vocally-driven" y en este Mima sabe bien lo que hace. A mí al menos me encanta su voz y la manipula súper en esta canción la cual es otra experimentación con géneros incluyendo el funk/soul de nuevo. No me pompeo mucho...

La Ducati: Meeeehh... Otra "vocally-driven" song, bien minimalista en cuanto a instrumentación y de hecho, el ritmito es como que algo juguetón. Me recuerda como que una canción que uno canta cuando se esta mofando de alguien o cuando es chiquito o algo así. Creo que ese fue el propósito de la canción para ir con la letra medio psycho. Otra canción viajera-aburrida... NEXT!

Agua Fría: Otra canción que es para "lucirse" en vivo con su banda. Bien world music / caribeña / jazz contemporáneo experimental. Pero súper aburrida... Ya la había escuchado en sus presentaciones. Esta cool tenerla con buena calidad pero al fin, es una que le puedo dar "skip" sin pensarlo.

Ojo Avizor Remix:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! Mi canción favorita de su primer CD ha recibido un mega cambio! Y en mi opinión, para mal. Es como medio "soul" también con mucho efecto, guitarra con el "wah" como que con un poquito de "chorus" metío a la vez (q mucho usaron "wah" en el CD!?!) aarrgh!! Cuando salieron los "vientos" violando mis oídos (ambos) a 55 grados en el stage (más o menos!) por poco me cago encima!!!

:-(

Yo quiero Andar: Sigue nuevamente un ritmo monótono bien wordly pero tiene cierto "charm". Hay algo de la canción que me llama. Quizás es que los vientos finalizando la canción me recuerdan a un track de Final Fantasy (sip.. la serie de videojuegos!) Ahora, eso no significa que me encanta, pero SI considero que es buena.

P.S. La ultima canción tiene una “napita” a los 12 minutos y pico…

Para estar seguro de lo que escuchaba, le metí tiempo al CD en mi trabajo con mi portable set-up (Shure 940s with JDSLabs Cmoy) y aparte de las diferencias entre los Senns y los Shure's no escuche nada diferente.



En conclusión, PARA MI... as in… MI OPINION, el CD es súper aburrido! Entiendo que Mima quizo algo diferente pero quizás la influencia de DJ Nature y de la misma Rita Indiana (Los Misterios) llevaron al CD por este camino. Que conste, ESO NO ES MALO! El disco demuestra el nivel al cual están estos individuos. Bien caco-style, esta gente esta "BIEN POR ENCIMA"!! Se ve que a todos les gusta bregar con sonidos, con estilos, con musicalidad, con texturas, etc. pero esto no siempre hace que la música sea del disfrute de las masas. Es como un CD de Robi Draco. Todo el mundo sabe que el tipo es un “mostro” y le “mete” pero al final del día prefieres poner un cabrón CD de Pitbull!!! HEHEHEHE Ok... quizás no tanto pero ustedes entienden... (espero...)

Ahora, esto no significa que he quedado defraudado… al menos NO DEL TODO ;-).

Quisiera ver/escuchar “El Pozo” en vivo. La próxima vez que Mima ofrezca una
presentación, definitivo que voy a verla. Quizás es que yo decidí “dormir” (quedarme con el sonido, estilo del CD viejo pero efectivo) y ella simplemente se puso a “andar”…

Rating: 3 chocolates de 5

Ahora voy a escuchar el "re-release" del primer CD y gozármelo completito! Dudo mucho que le de rotación a "El Pozo" como le di al primero pero quien sabe, quizás hago una asignación con el… (i.e. arrebatarme en algo full y volverlo a escuchar en los “loudspeakers” de casa…)

Check it! :-p

HORROR FEST!!! October Horror movie challenge..

Hola!

So... I decided to indirectly participate in DVD Talk's 7th Annual "October Horror Movie Challenge". What is that? Basically the goal is to watch 100 movies in 31 days. Of course, not everyone is able to achieve that so in my case (as a lot of people) I plan to watch 1 each day so at least 31 in total. My list is quite weird, but it's mostly made up of movies I have in my collection.





I already started so I will keep updating the blog with mini reviews for the movies I see each day...

October 1: Final Destination --> So where the hell is Devon Sawa!?!? Is he alive? Anyway, decided to watch the first Final Destination on the first day of this challenge because:

1) It's an entertaining movie
2) It's fast paced
3) it's the first one I picked randomly from my collection! :-p

I still think that this is the best of the series, maybe not the best "death" scenes but at least they were more believable (take that word lightly though...) Loved the acting of Devon (I also liked him in Idle Hands... which is more of "horror-comedy") and a few others. And of course, the cameo by Mr. Candyman himself.

Anyway, I enjoyed it yesterday like I enjoyed it the first time so that must be good right?!

October 2: A Blade in the Dark --> Now, here's a movie about another Italian director trying to be bloody and artsy at the same time. Like most of their "thrillers", almost no story, slow paced and the acting is terrible. Voice dubbing almost killed it too! (It better be dubbing because it was atrocious!). The ending you could see it coming a mile away and it shows that director Lamberto Bava will never live up to his dad's work!!! This is an hour and forty eight minutes that could really be cut to an hour and make the movie more effective (i.e. pick up the pace a bit!).

Maybe I'm being too critical due to seeing work from other Italian directors in the 70s and 80s but good God, I did not like this one too much. If I was to rate it I would give it a 1.5 out of 5 (because I liked the Villa atmosphere and the main "song"... gotta love those synths sounds!!!)


And that's it for now... I'll probably create new posts or just keep on editing this one! :-p

Check