What I Like

Auto-correct – One of the few gripes I have with the iPhone is its egotistic auto-correct feature. Without adding words, I can’t swear or type in foreign languages without being corrected. Not the Nexus One though! I could write whatever I want without having to battle the phone for dominion over my linguistic choices. It has even recognized my address book’s and Google Contacts friends’ names.

Performance – It’s the fastest Android-powered phone I’ve tried so far. No lag whatsoever! Not sure how it performs in comparison with the iPhone 3G S. But I’m guessing it should be at least comparable.

Auto-syncing with Google accounts – I was a bit shocked when I first played with the phone. After logging in with my Google account, I found all my contacts, photos and even web search history on the phone. It was quite scary at first, but I have to say it’s now quite handy since I’m now only one touch away from everything.

Camera – For a phone, it has quite a good camera. It has 5MP with flash. Here are two shots. One of yummy waffles and a low-light shot of a souvenir Kirin got me when she visited Singapore. I did not edit the pictures except to watermark and re-size them.

What can be improved

Scrolling – It takes a little bit more effort to scroll on the Nexus One than on the iPhone but it’s better than all other touchscreen phones I’ve tried so far.

Touch buttons – I think this is a matter of personal preference. If you’ve read my gadget reviews before, you’d know that I don’t like touch buttons. They are no match for real buttons. Touch buttons fail miserably at usability – even with tactile feedback.

Accelerometer – There’s a bit of a lag when I turn the phone sideways for the larger keyboard. I feel like I have to shake it for the screen to change. Definitely not as smooth as the iPhone.

Design – The Nexus One is not the type of phone where you whip out of your pocket and everyone in the vicinity will go “whoa!”. Here’s a photo of the Nexus One next to the ultra sexy Sony Ericsson Xperia X10. There’s just no comparison in terms of looks.

So tempted to buy it but….I. must. resist!

I am this close to clicking “buy” at google.com/phone. It’s one of the very few phones that I very happy with. And the iPhone HD (or whatever it’s gonna be called) and HTC Desire are coming out, so I shouldn’t be hasty.

More importantly, I’ve actually been resisting a smartphone for the longest time because:

1. I don’t want to be that accessible.
2. I would really like to experience life outside of rectangular screens.
3. And I don’t want to be that rude person who whips out her smartphone to check some unimportant email / tweet, while leaving her dinner companions feeling dejected.

We’ll see how long my resistance can last before I cave in. Vive la Résistance!

Related posts:

1. Review: LG Viewty KU990R

Witty Tagline

Anyway, I’ve always been a bit of a language freak, so it’s not surprising that a lot of my jokes are puns. But it’s a shame they always end up being quite lame or worse, when nobody seems to get them. So I always appreciate it (okay, more like become envious) when people make witty puns with the English language – and HTC’s new tagline has gotta be one them:

You don’t need to get a phone. You need a phone that gets you.

.

It’s ingenious, but not so in-your-face kinda ingenious. It’s more like a subtle kinda ingenious, so I can see how this all fits in with their new brand positioning “quietly brilliant”, which is also quite brilliant in itself.

(Okay, sorry. Couldn’t resist the pun.)

The ads that came with the YOU campaign are pretty darn witty too. They’ve got one where you see from the phone’s perspective, and another where it emphasizes how their phones are customized to suit the lifestyles of different individuals.

Wicked Tattoos

To celebrate the launch of the HTC Tattoo, HTC also gave everyone airbrushed tattoos. It’s such a neat idea to get everyone excited. Here’s a picture of Jacelyn‘s, mine and Nicole‘s Android tattoos.

There were a bunch of other tattoos like vintage ones, tribal ones and even Hello Kitty ones!

You can check out what tattoos the other bloggers got, along with the hot models clad in winter Springfield clothing at my Facebook album.

(Okay, okay. That’s my last play with words, I promise.)

So that’s it from me for now. Will search for time over the next week to publish some of my many drafts before super busy season starts again for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings. This will be my last project for the year before I take my uber-long staycation in December. Woot! Can’t wait!

No related posts.

The Bag

I’m a low maintenance kind of person, who loves black leather and solid shapes. I don’t really take good care of my stuff (except electronics). So I carry a relatively inexpensive solid black bag from Braun Buffel.

The Stuff

Like a low maintenance girl should be, I don’t bring too much around with me. Just the essentials.

• Automatic umbrella from Esprit – I’m quite afraid of the blade-like thing used to close umbrellas. So I invested in an umbrella with a button instead. Hahaha. Pussy.
• Black-rimmed glasses from Versace – My astigmatism is off the charts. Since my eyes are too dry, I can’t wear contacts. So I wear this instead when I really have to see. But most of the time, I prefer to walk around half blind.
• Name card holder from Tumbleweed – Been searching for a patterned business card holder for the longest time. It’s nice to have those usual metal or leather card holders, but I always feel that they lack a certain personality. Then I chanced upon this cart at Clarke Quay selling handing handmade trinkets and got this.
• Padlock – for my gym locker.
• Wallet from Danier
• Lipstick from Yves Saint Laurent – This little thing is the most beautiful and functional makeup piece I own. It’s got two colors + a mirror + a brush. How cool is that?! I got it in #1 Sparkling Beige.
• iPhone, LG Viewty, HTC S630 – I work for a telecommunications company. So carrying around 3 phones shouldn’t be too surprising, should it? I don’t really own the iPhone by the way. I just borrow it from the department to check my work email and occasionally tweet when I’m on the move. The Viewty is my office line. It’s also my backup camera. The 5MP camera really comes in handy when I attend events and forget to lug my Canon A590 IS with me. And the HTC S630 is my personal line. I want to replace it soon though. It’s too slow! Palm Pre, where are you!?!
• Cowon D2 MP3 Player – I’m a bit of an audiophile. I need high quality music. So an iPod could never make the cut for me. The Cowon sound quality is simply amazing. On top of that, it has an English-English, Korean-English, English-Korean dictionary. It also has a 52 hour battery life. I rarely ever charge this thing; once every few months at most.

Blogger Cards – Close Up

Oh and here some close up shots of my blogger business card for the non-believers. (Hello Sigg3!)

You’s Been Tagged

I know a lot of people are aversed to memes, so I’m not forcing you to do it. But I’m gonna tag ya anyway!

• Dayna of AmourChaleur
• Katy of TwentyFourCarat
• Iva of Iva is Me
• Tara of Aigoo-Chamna
• Wendy of Rin-Wendy

Related posts:

1. Review: LG Viewty KU990R

It looks like I have an older firmware. LG has yet to allow people to upgrade their firmware via their website. I will update this post whenever I make my way down to the LG Service Centre at Vivo City.

So, I got another cellphone for work purposes. And this was one of the phone I was considering to buy, if not for the lack of quadband capabilities: LG Viewty KU990R.

In Singapore, it comes in three shades: white, pretty pink and sleek black. I had a hard time choosing between to two, but ultimately chose the black. I don’t think anyone will take me seriously with a bright pink cellphone.

LG Viewty KU990R Review

Pros

• Responsive Touch Screen – The first that pops up when you switch on the phone is a touch screen calibrating system, which allows the phone to customize its responses to your fingers. And the touch screen response is simply amazing! So far, I’ve not mistyped an SMS or misfired while playing Space Commando (a futuristic phone version of Counter Strike).
• Big Bright Screen – Even under the amazingly hot sun of Singapore, the screen is still very clearly visible.
• Full-Featured Camera – Well, it’s not as a good as a digital camera, but it still performs better than most camera phones in the market. With the flash, it can even take decent night shots. Along with basic camera features, LG has also added different modes, image stabilization and special effects! It’s like the Mac photobooth – only portable!
• Vibrate Touch Response – One of the common complaints about touchscreen gadgets is the lack of response when you press on something. LG has changed all that. Now the phone vibrates whenever you click on something. Good job!

Cons

• Strange Scrolling Method – With any computer program, you would always scroll down by moving the scrollbar downwards or rolling the scrollwheel downwards. Even my Cowon D2 MP3 player does the same. But LG had to be special and have the user scroll upwards to move the page down, and scroll downwards to move the page up. It’s really confusing my senses even after using it for 2 weeks.
• Fingerprint Magnet – This is quite standard for most touchscreen gadgets, right? Someone please invent a matte touchscreen!
• No Full Keyboard - Well, it’s a touchscreen phone, why have a phone keyboard when you can add a full-sized QWERTY keyboard?! Even my tiny Cowon D2 has a full keyboard for the dictionary feature! So size is not a constraint at all!

Pictures from my LG Viewty KU990R

The BMW Garage at the F1 Singapore Grand Prix

The Pit Grandstands at the F1 Singapore Grand Prix

Ivy’s Final Verdict

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

On the whole, this is a pretty good phone. Great camera, great touchscreen ergonomics and great looks. The designers clearly put a lot of thought into making this a fashion-forward and functional phone. However, the designers shouldn’t get too carried away by designing a scrolling system that is counter-intuitive. That’s as big of a blunder as replacing the QWERTY keyboard.

But is it an iPhone killer? Definitely not. It’s missing basic internet features like wi-fi, and full-fledged browsers like Firefox, Safari or even Internet Explorer. Although the LG Viewty does have good basic features like Google Maps, GMail and Google. Besides, I don’t really consider the iPhone a real phone with the lack of basic features like changing batteries; it’s more like an iPod that you can make calls with.

All in all, LG Viewty KU990R is the perfect gadget for camwhores and fashionistas (or fashionistos). It’s a great looking phone, packed with solid basic features, and full-fledged digital camera to capture your narcissistic moments.

And if you’re looking for an iPhone killer, look elsewhere – somewhere like the HTC Dream running on Google Android.

No related posts.