Monday, December 31, 2007

Red Ring of Death Update II - XBOX 360 Back Home

On the last day of 2007, I received from Microsoft a refurbished XBOX 360 as a replacement for my original one that was afflicted with the Red Ring of Death (RRoD) problem. In all it took 21 days for me to call up support, receive a shipping box (coffin), send my 360 to Microsoft's Jabil outsourced repair center, and finally have a refurbished unit returned to me. Not bad turnaround considering the holidays.

Now I'm crossing my fingers and hoping this 360 will last a while. It's scary how many other 360 owners have dealt/are dealing with the same RRoD issue, many multiple times. The forums at xbox.com are jam-packed with RRoD stories and rants. Let's hope this is my last time and later XBOX 360 builds with the new 65mm "Falcon" chip are more reliable....

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Thursday, December 27, 2007

REVIEW: TRITTON AX BLUESTREAM Bluetooth Stereo Headset

I haven't had much success with Bluetooth headsets in the past. They never seemed to fit my ear properly and while I had a hard time hearing, people on the other end of calls always complained about the sound quality.

I was ready to throw in the towel on my most recent Bluetooth headset, the Plantronics Discovery 655, when the PR folks for TRITTON Technologies asked me if I wanted to check out their latest Audio Xtreme (AX) BlueStream bluetooth stereo headset.

I jumped at the opportunity because not only did my current headset suck, but I also wanted to see how my Samsung Blackjack Windows Mobile 5 handset would fare as a music player when paired with a Bluetooth 2.0 enabled stereo headset. The Blackjack supposedly supports stereo audio playback through A2DP, but has some Bluetooth issues and so I wondered if the AX Bluestream would work well.

The AX Bluestream, which retails for US$79.99, is a 2.5-inch long clip-on device that has a universal 3.5mm jack at the top so you can plug in any stereo headset. It also sports an "OLED" display for displaying Caller ID, volume, and music playback status, and has a built-in microphone, rechargeable Li-Polymer battery and mini USB port for charging and firmware upgrades.

The AX Bluestream comes well-equipped out of the box with stereo headphones, a mono headset, USB charging cable and an USB AC adapter. The manual is OK and it was simple to pair the device with my Blackjack. In fact, I was also easily able to pair the AX Bluestream with my home Intel iMac running Leopard, which I will get to later in the review.

Instead of using the supplied stereo headphones, I've been using ones from my iPod shuffle and they worked fine for my needs. I usually clip the AX Bluestream to my shirt near the neck so the mic can pick up my voice better. The device's clip function could be better as it doesn't hold on to thinner fabric shirts that well.

Other than some Blackjack Bluetooth quirkiness, the AX Bluestream really shines for voice calls. Having headphones in both ears makes a world of difference. Conversations and conference calls are much clearer and louder whether I'm at my desk or in a noisy environment. And for people at the other end of the phone call, there have been no more complaints that I sounded like I'm under water or far, far away. Overall the feedback from people I've called regarding the voice quality emanating from the handset via the AX Bluestream has been very positive.

On the music front, I sideloaded some MP3s from my iTunes collection to the Blackjack's microSD card and turned on its Bluetooth stereo headset capabilities. After manually launching Windows Media Player and playing a song, the AX Bluestream's support for AVRCP allowed for remote music playback control. I could play, pause and skip to the next or previous song by pressing buttons on the device.

Sound quality of the music played through the AX Bluestream was pretty good. Not high fidelity/audiophile levels nor as good as connecting headphones directly to an iPod, but that is probably due to the limitation of Bluetooth 2.0 itself. The tech is beyond me but it has something to do with audio compression and data transfer caps. Suffice to say, music sound quality was fine for me and I could envision using the Blackjack as a music player if Windows Media Player wasn't so crappy. There is no way to quit the app other than through a forced quit, which is very annoying as it's a multi-step process. I might have to investigate acquiring a 3rd-party music playing app if I keep the Blackjack much longer.

As I mentioned earlier, I was also able to pair the AX Bluestream to my iMac with Leopard.This let me use the device to "wirelessly" listen to iTunes and other content via the iMac, which was pretty cool. I could walk around my living room listening without being tethered to the iMac. Too bad I couldn't be paired to two different devices at the same time, such as the iMac and my Blackjack. Now that would be really useful. I didn't try it with Skype but I'm pretty sure that would have worked as well.

Since the AX Bluestream uses a jack to plug in stereo headsets, I read some complaints claiming it's not really wireless because it requires wired headphones. I actually liked being able to customize the device with stereo headphones that best suited my needs instead of being limited to a vendor's design.

So if you want an integrated, one-piece Bluetooth stereo headset without any wires then the Tritton Technologies AX Bluestream is definitely not for you. However, if you have a favorite pair of headphones and want a reasonably priced Bluetooth device that not only works very well for hands-free voice calls but also for listening to audio content in stereo then you can't go wrong with the AX Bluestream.

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

December 26, 2007 Roundup

Happy holidays! Analysts in the news for December 26:

  • James Faucette at Pacific Crest Securities and Tavis McCourt at Morgan Keegan via BusinessWeek about Research In Motion: What Slowdown?
  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about 2007 Predictions Reviewed
  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about VIVENDI's SFR buys Neuf Cegetel - First Take
  • Fredrik Ademar at VisionMobile about Boosting internet in mobile: the return of the browser proxies (mobile megatrend series)

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Thursday, December 20, 2007

December 20, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 20:

  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about So how did I do with my predictions?
  • Ross Rubin at NPD Group about at Starbucks, the song doesn’t remain the same
  • Carolina Milanesi at Gartner, Roger Entner at IAG Research and Barry Gilbert at Strategy Analytics via Bloomberg.com about Mobile-Phone Spending in U.S. Sets Record on IPhone
  • Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin and independent telecom analyst Jeff Kagan via E-Commerce Times about Wireless Industry Crystal Ball Gazing: iPhone Trouble Ahead?
  • Charles Golvin at Forrester Research, David Chamberlain at In-Stat and Chris Hazelton at IDC via MacNewsWorld about iPhone: Apple Aims iPhone at Japan
  • Standard & Poor’s analyst Todd Rosenbluth via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Research In Motion Shares Rise Ahead Of Earnings

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Red Ring of Death Update

Just an update on my XBOX 360 red ring of death issue. I called XBOX support on Sunday, December 9 and received the box to ship my 360 to their repair facility on Friday, December 14. I dropped it off at a UPS store on Saturday, December 15 and it looks like it will arrive at the facility today. I'm holding out hope it is repaired and returned before New Year's. Otherwise, no new game playing on the 360 until 2008.

On a side note, UPS must use an interesting route optimization system to get my 360 from Northern California to Texas. The package has gone across the country and back to meet the 3-day delivery:

OAKLAND, CA, US 12/18/2007 7:26 A.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
DES MOINES,IA, US 12/18/2007 3:08 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
LINTHICUM,MD, US 12/18/2007 10:24 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
LOUISVILLE,KY, US 12/19/2007 2:30 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
SAN ANTONIO,TX, US 12/19/2007 11:59 P.M. DEPARTURE SCAN
MC ALLEN,TX, US 12/20/2007 7:44 A.M. OUT FOR DELIVERY

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

December 19, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 19:

  • Thomas Watts at Cowen & Co., Lisa Pierce at Forrester and Berge Ayvazian at Yankee Group via BusinessWeek about Hesse on the Hot Seat at Sprint
  • Dan Bieler at IDC via BusinessWeek about Big Profits with No-Frills Mobile
  • Paul Goode at M:Metrics about Football Season Gives Mobile Content Usage a Kick
  • Julie Ask at JupiterResearch about Mobile Widgets & Zumobi/Zenzui
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Handset subsidy.... or loan?
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about 3GSM in Barcelona...
  • Andrew Rassweiler and Chris Crotty at iSuppli about Teardown Reveals Apple’s iPod touch is More Than an iPhone Without a Phone
  • GMP Securities analyst Ray Sharma, Info-Tech Research Group analyst Michelle Warren and IDC analyst Chris Hazelton via Globe and Mail about RIM poised for consumer push
  • Jack Gold at J. Gold Associates and Ken Dulaney at Gartner via InformationWeek about Why Is Palm Still Standing?
  • Citigroup’s Jim Suva, Pacific Crest’s James Faucette, UBS’ Maynard Um, Credit Suisse’s Michael Ounjian and RBC Capital’s Mike Abramsky via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Palm Slides On Rotten Outlook; Where Is The Bottom?
  • Roger Entner at IAG Research via RCR Wireless News about A mobile social service to get you out to the bar

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

PSP Media Manager now free to download...finally

Courtesy of Joystiq, I couldn't resist posting about Sony finally offering the PSP Media Manager software free to download. Wow, it only took them a year and a half to see the light that this should be free for customers. I wonder how little they actually sold.....

December 18, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 18:

  • iSuppli's Andrew Rassweiler via BusinessWeek about Inside iPod Touch
  • Michael Gartenberg at JupiterResearch about Peggle is now out of the iPod
  • Patti Freeman Evans at JupiterResearch about Back Surgeons Beware
  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about Mobile TV news
  • Thomas Menguy at VisionMobile about Execution engines: understanding the alphabet soup of ARM, .NET, Java, Flash …
  • Jack Gold at J. Gold Associates and Lisa Pierce at Forrester Research via Computerworld about Industry veteran Dan Hesse named new Sprint CEO
  • Gene Munster at Piper Jaffray & Co. via Computerworld about Apple reportedly in talks iPhone with Japanese carriers
  • Gartner analyst Tole Hart via the Herald Sun about Texts messages to exceed 10 billion in Australia
  • Mike Abramsky at RBC Capital via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Palm Reports Later Today; Would Elevation Buy The Rest?
  • Roger Entner at IAG Research and William Ho at Current Analysis via Telephony about Can Hesse stop the bleeding at Sprint?
  • Bill Ho at Current Analysis and IDC analyst Chris Hazelton via CIO Today about WVoicemail-to-Text Comes to Alltel Phones

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Monday, December 17, 2007

December 17, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 17:

  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Whatever happened to BT Fusion?
  • Bruce Gibson at Juniper Research about Vehicle and People Tracking Revenues to reach 3.3 Billion Euros in Western Europe by 2012, driven by Business Efficiency requirements and concerns over Personal Security
  • Iain Gillott at iGR via RCR Wireless News about The year in review… 2017
  • Yankee Group analyst Linda Barrabee via ENT News Online about Microsoft Research Spin-Off Seeks To Better Mobile Browsing
  • Piper Jaffray’s Gene Munster and AmTech’s Shaw Wu via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Apple: Piper, AmTech Say No 3G iPhone Before Mid-'08
  • Credit Suisse’s Michael Ounjian, Morgan Stanley’s John Marchetti, Citigroup’s Jim Suva and Goldman Sachs analyst Brantley Thompson via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Research In Motion: Conflicting Views Ahead Of Earnings; How Much Are They Hurt By Slowing Financial Sector?

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Thursday, December 13, 2007

December 13, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 13:

  • Ian Fogg at JupiterResearch about Feedback: Apple Over Here
  • Gartner analyst Van Baker and Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin via the Globe and Mail about Got a fancy new phone? Time to start using it
  • Ken Dulaney at Gartner and Philip Solis at ABI Research via chicagotribune.com about The next generation: Multimedia anywhere
  • J.P. Morgan analyst Paul Coster via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Plantronics Shares Plunge On J.P. Morgan Downgrade; Analyst Says Bluetooth Headsets Losing Shelf Space

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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

December 12. 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 12:

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Tuesday, December 11, 2007

December 11, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 11:

  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th Screen?
  • Michael Gartenberg at JupiterResearch about 5 Things I'd like to see added to the iPhone
  • Julie Ask at JupiterResearch about Shopping for Phones Online
  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about "1st Screen" by SFR
  • John Delaney at Ovum via Dow Jones about Vodafone Takes Steps To Reduce Costs At Indian Joint Venture
  • Craig Mathias at Farpoint Group and Rich Costello at Gartner via TechNewsWorld about Five Tech Trends to Watch in 2008
  • Caris & Co.’s Shebly Seyrafi via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Apple Hits New High; Caris Ups Target; Stk Nears $200
  • Roger Entner at IAG Research via The Detroit News about First BlackBerry store launches

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Monday, December 10, 2007

December 10, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 10:

  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about So what has been the 'device of the year' in 2007?
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about So what do you want in your phone for Xmas?
  • Andreas Constantinou at VisionMobile about Nokia’s Ovi equals S60 squared
  • Brian Modoff at Deutsche Bank via Economist.com about Goodbye, Moto
  • JupiterResearch analyst Michael Gartenberg, Gartner analyst Michael King and Ross Rubin at NPD Group via San Diego UNION-TRIBUNE about Wrap it up
  • Stephen Baker at NPD Group via ZDNet about Why Dell needs a handheld
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis via Network World about Telecom Italia abandons UMA
  • Michael Gartenberg at JupiterResearch and Shaw Wu at American Technology Research via Reuters about iPhone winning corporate fans despite flaws
  • John Tysoe at Mobile World and Carolina Milanesi at Gartner via the New York Times about Nokia Pushes to Regain U.S. Sales in Spite of Apple and Google
  • UBS analyst Maynard Um via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Palm: UBS Downgrades To Sell
  • JupiterResearch analyst Neil Strother via the DAILY NEWS about What is the right age for a cell phone?

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Red Ring of Death and Other Digital Disasters

Yesterday was not a good digital day at the Sun household. First our DSL modem finally kicked the bucket after 7+ years of faithful service.

With no Internet access, the family had to resort to going outdoors, Christmas shopping at brick & mortar stores and watching TV for information. Scary. I'm heading to Best Buy today to pick up a new DSL modem so we can get back on the information highway.

The second issue was my son's XBOX 360 succumbed to the infamous "Red Ring of Death." It lasted almost 1.5 years so I guess we were luckier than most. I called it into Microsoft support and now need to wait for them to ship me a box so I can send the console in to their repair center.

I'm guessing we won't have a new/refurbished/repaired 360 at home until January 2008. Good thing I bought my son a couple of 360 games for Christmas. The Bourne Ultimatum on HD DVD will also gather dust as well unless I get a standalone player, which given the state of the Blu-Ray / HD DVD stalemate is not a great move unless I can find one really cheap.

At least it won't be a video game free holiday season as I picked up a Wii for my soon-to-be 10 year old daughter for her combined Xmas/Birthday gift.....

Thursday, December 06, 2007

December 6, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 6:

  • Phil Solis at ABI Research about Tide Changing Between UMA-based and SIP-based FMC Services
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about E-Mobile - cellular VoIP and subsidised DSL
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about A misconception - 1 SIM = 1 Identified User
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Multiple device ownership - crunching some numbers
  • Jack Gold at J. Gold Associates via eWEEK about TomTom Gets New Directions From Google
  • Michael Gartenberg, at JupiterResearch via CIO-Today about Google Releases iPhone-Specific Interface
  • Charles S. Golvin at Forrester Research via the New York Times about For Parents, a Service That Can Offer Peace of Mind
  • Gartner analyst Carolina Milanesi and Nomura analyst Richard Windsor via Reuters about Nokia's sets eyes on Internet to support handsets
  • John Delaney at Ovum via the International Herald Tribune about 15 years of text messages, a 'cultural phenomenon'
  • RBC Capital’s Mike Abramsky via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Apple: European iPhone Sales Solid, RBC Says
  • Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Research In Motion: Canaccord Cuts Target, Estimates; Survey Finds Slowing Momentum
  • Ben Wood at CCS Insight and Alan Brown at Gartner via washingtonpost.com about Nokia sees HD video on cellphones in a few years

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Tuesday, December 04, 2007

December 4, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 4:

  • Jill Meyers at In-Stat about Ranks of Young Cord Cutters Increasing Steadily
  • Michael Gartenberg at JupiterResearch about Nokia "Comes With Music" - First Take
  • Mark Mulligan at JupiterResearch about First Take: Nokia's 'Music With You'
  • JupiterResearch analyst Michael Gartenberg via CIO-Today about T-Mobile Wins iPhone Battle in Germany
  • Enskilda analyst Mats Nystrom and Nomura analyst Richard Windsor via Dow Jones about Nokia Shares Fall; Upgraded Margin Goal Deemed Conservative

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Monday, December 03, 2007

December 3, 2007 Roundup

Analysts in the news for December 3:

  • Ross Rubin at NPD Group via Engadget about Switched On: Rainforest fire (Part 2)
  • Mark Mulligan at JupiterResearch about One More Reason Why Mobile Music Still Has Some Way To Go
  • Thomas Husson at JupiterResearch about 5 mobile advertising "myths"
  • Ian Fogg at JupiterResearch about Mobile Nagging on Network Use
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Femtocell - who coined the term and when?
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Is there such a thing as a 'vanilla' IMS handset?
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Handset privacy - any rules or standards?
  • Dean Bubley at Disruptive Analysis about Mobile payments for car parking - awful user experience
  • Dimitris Mavrakis at VisionMobile about Do we really need femto cells?
  • Jack Gold at J. Gold Associates, IDC analyst Godfrey Chua and Jason Kowal at Analysys via washingtonpost.com about Verizon May be Seeking Merger
  • Deutsche Bank analyst Brian Modoff via BusinessWeek about Motorola: The End of the Zander Era
  • Mike Gartenberg at JupiterResearch and Current Analysis analyst Brad Akyuz via RCR Wireless News about AT&T Mobility embraces ‘Cyber Monday’
  • Robert Ferguson at ThinkEquity Partners, Albert Lin at American Technology Research, Avi Greengart at Current Analysis, Tero Kuittinen at Avian Securities and Rob Enderle at The Enderle Group via RCR Wireless News about Promises of more device choices
  • Brian Modoff at Deutsche Bank Securities and Ed Snyder at Charter Equity Research via chicagotribune.com about Zander's smash and crash
  • Morgan Keegan analyst Tavis McCourt via Barron’s Online Tech Trader Daily about Research In Motion: Morgan Keegan Downgrades; Cites Worries On Softer Demand From Financial Sector
  • Richard Windsor at Nomura Securities, Lawrence Harris at Oppenheimer & Co, Mark McKechnie at American Technology Research and John Lau at Jefferies & Co via BusinessWeek about Qualcomm's Double Whammy

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