January 31st, 2007 by 
Administrator
So after about 5 years of delay, Vista finally arrives.
There are some reports saying that people lining up to get a first chance to buy the product but I think the hype is a lot less than years ago when MS launched Win 95 and Win XP.
Many critics especially Mac lovers will say that Vista is nothing really special as that is what a Mac OS is doing right now. That may be true but to 95% (worldwide share of computers running Windows) of computer users, that is still something to look forward to. Speaking of Mac vs Windows, I really like the series of recent Mac ads, a lot of them actually targeting Vista upgrades.
I find myself not really eager to the first batch of Vista converts as I have doubts on the bugs that may still running and on the computing power that it requires to run this probably. So I guess I will keep a close eye on the early reviews.
Nevertheless, this probably is good news for the overall computer industry especially the hardware companies as many users have been delaying their purchase waiting for the arrival of Vista.
For those who are interested, here’s an interview of Bill Gates on Vista by Business Week.
Posted in Reviews, Business | 
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January 19th, 2007 by Administrator
Two guys Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, who founded music sharing network Kaaza and the VOIP service Skype (which was sold to eBay Inc. for around $2.5 billion in 2005) announced another new project - the Venice Project, which is now renamed as Joost (www.joost.com).
The site is still in beta and inviting users to sign up and test the new service and report problems. I have signed up about 10 days ago and finally got the invitation email.
Tried it last night and it was quite a different experience in terms of how one can enjoy TV shows. The interface is quite nice although not totally intuitive. The streaming quality of the video is also acceptable. Right now the problem is their limited content (as expected Paris Hilton was there …). I spent about 10 minutes and quit their application.
However there’s a lot of potential for the service as they bill themselves as the first free global TV distribution platform, uniting advertisers, content owners and viewers in a piracy-free interactive service.
If series like 24 or Prison Break are available on Joost as the new episodes are being aired in US, I don’t mind even paying to watch them. Right now in HK, I either have to wait local TV to broadcast them which could be anytime from 3-9 months or wait for the DVD box set which could take even longer.
Although iTunes also sells TV shows but again it only restricts to the US.
I am more than willing to pay and watch what’s the latest for Jack Bauer and Michael Scofield. Hope that Joost may be able to convince some media companies and make those channels available.
Posted in internet, Business | 3 Comments »
January 17th, 2007 by Administrator
Whether you like basketball or not, what Michael Jordan did was quite impressive. It defies the law of physics to a certain extent. Enjoy the clip!
Posted in Sports | No Comments »
January 17th, 2007 by Administrator
Can’t help to write a bit more on iPhone. The amount of press that iPhone received since its announcement has been phenomenol. I’ve been reading from BusinessWeek, Time, CNN websites on their detailed coverage and analysis. HK Local newspaper Apple Daily even covered the news on its front page.
There are some doubters on iPhone, saying that it is too expensive and that it does not offer 3G. People are also worried about battery life which was also one of my concerns. However I understand that there will be 2 seperate batteries with one for phone and the other for iPod so that should work out fine.
As for the point about 3G, my view is that they will continue to push on product development and I won’t be surprised that Steve will announce a 3G phone in MacWorld 2008. Probably also a iPhone Nano with less functionalities but price at a more attractive level. Just look at iPod and you can notice that there has been so many new versions coming to the market since the first one was launched to the market. It was not until iPod mini’s launch that it really made a big impact to the mass market. I expcet iPhone to have a similar path.
It will be interesting to see how other big players react before the first batch of iPhone is being made available to the market.
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January 10th, 2007 by Administrator
There has been so much hype about an iPhone prior to MacWorld and many fans have done their own designs on what it could be like. Expectations are high but Steve Jobs revealed yesterday at MacWorld what iPhone will be like and it is simply impressive.
The UI is very user friendly and looks nice too. The functionality is very comprehensive and takes care of all the users needs. The Maps application is like what you will see in a movie about the future. The future is about 6 months from now as the device still needs to get authorization from FCC. For interested parties, go check out the demo at their site:
http://www.apple.com/iphone/Price wise it is also quite attractive compared to the other smartphones. a 4GB model sells for US$499. My major concern on the phone’s battery especially if you turn out WiFi and bluetooth. The first generations of iPods also has a lot of battery problems and I hope that won’t reoccur in the iPhones.
In any case, I will get myself one once it is available in the market. Wonder if they will also be available in Hong Kong when it launches in the US.
Posted in internet, Reviews, Business | 1 Comment »
January 9th, 2007 by Administrator
I got 4 bags while my wife got only one (for her, it’s quality instead of quantity). I paid JPY20000 each for the DKNY and the CK bags and there were close to JPY120,000 worth of goods inside. The whole experience was quite remarkable.
Posted in Travel | No Comments »
