Sleeker solutions

Some of the greatest achievements in technology are taken for granted and overlooked. I look around every now and then I marvel at how small and thin things are getting these days. Question in point the USB power adapter. Some time back I picked up a USB power adapter that I could use for my iPhone. This is not the official sleek adapter that comes with the iPhone but a local adapter which could be used in local power sockets (because I picked up my iPhone in Hong Kong and it comes with a flat pin adapter). Recently I bought a Kindle which came with its own power adapter. Comparison of the three USB power adapters shows how things have definitely progressed over the years. Things are getting smaller, slimmer and much sleeker. Kudos to a product developer somewhere out there. Another unsung hero.

This made me start to think. It must be years since the plug was invented. Yet the world over we still seem to have so many different types of plugs. True we now have universal power adapters (ideal for globe trotters) that bridges the gap. Did you know that the patent for the first grounded plug goes way back to 1915, and was filed by George P Knapp. Today there are around 11 different types of plugs in existence. One would think that after having become so technologically advanced we couldn’t have settled on one standard for the basic plug by now. Another interesting fact I chanced upon was that when electricity was new people used to connect appliances to light bulb sockets because the electricity charged for light sockets was cheaper!

An Apple a day

I am still discovering the joys of my new iPhone and the new ipad has already created quite a ruckuss. To me it's a bit like something out of Star Trek or some other science fiction movie.

What interests me is it's potential to be the first fully coloured e-book reader. This means reading photograpy magazines will be possible to say the least. The question though is whether we will be able to read our own PDFs or will be forced to get it from an apple store, a store that will not have books outside the US market. You do have to hand it to Apple for aceing the design.

On one hand some might argue that it's nothing but a larger albeit stripped down verion of an iPhone a closer look tells us that the added screenspace has resulted in additional functionalities. And if the iPhone is anything to judge by, the iPad is going to be easy to use. Make no mistake this is a device that seeks to exist in that space between your PC/laptop And your digital photo frame. What would have really made it nice would have been the inclusion of an optical drive and a USB port. That said it is definitley on my consideration list.

The media though has been having a field day with it, I especially liked the economist cover stating a prophetic book of Jobs. Another is this viral video that is doing the rounds. What Hitler thinks of the iPad, hilarious yet addreses the grievances of most of the crowd.

For now I am keeping an eye on the other products from the stable of Apple :D

The Hong Kong Hangover

The first blog post of the New Year. I've been busy. I just recently got back from a trip to Hong Kong, and am getting over the jet lag and the technology hangover. HK is a city that thrives on technology. Whether it is the superfast and smooth airport express, or the numerous escalators and lifts that the people of hong kong live with, there's something that makes you feel awed by how technology dependent the city is. Not that they have a choice. The kind of distances one has to travel and the numerous levels of public transportation all mean that walking would literally be a pain in the leg. That said I once did decide to walk and not take one of those flat escalators and it did take me quite a while.

So what did I do in this gadget mecca, you ask? Well, I hunted for that gadget which is considered to be one of the most sought after items in the tech world, the iPhone 3 gs. Now just before I left I did find this phone selling here in India, albeit in the grey market. So why buy it in HK when I could get it at a better price here ( I lost a bit on the rupee to HK dollar conversion by using a card and not paying cash.) you ask? Well for one HK is one of those few places where you can pick up an officially unlocked phone , allowing me to use it with whatever carrier I choose. 

I was surprised that even there this was not an easy phone to lay my hands on. I had done some research as to where I might pick one up, but when the day dawned it was a bit of luck actually getting one. Though the official apple reseller DG Life didn't have one I did manage to find another shop at the Windsor house mall ( a computer mall on the 11th floor!).



For a guy who is upgrading from a Nokia 6 series phone that is almost 4 years old, this is quite a jump. I am now tethered to the net on mobile more often. The keyboard is quite amazing, being able to figure out what I type even though the keys look a bit cramped. The fact that this entire post is written on my iPhone is a testament to the ease. I have also discovered the joys of free wifi hotspots, Google maps and am developing an apptitude, pun intended.

I am always one who enjoys  tinkering and have already read a lot on jailbreaking. So lo and behold I jailbroke my phone using blackrain, only to revert it back to factory settings soon after.  Such things are not meant for the faint of heart. For now I am content with all the freebies itunes store has to offer and the fond memories of Hong Kong, more on both later!