The cover can serve as a stand anyway, so I might as well save that 10 bucks for something else.
As for the silicone case, I thought since I've never looked back after switching from that to this leather casing for my phone, I should apply it to the tablet too. The main reason is that I want something that can protect the already protected screen from scratches.
Therefore I went for the pouch as a backup instead which was cheaper anyway.
But if I have to use the pouch, there's going to be a slight issue with the lack of a stand/holder. No matter. A backup is a makeshift temporary solution, not a full-fledged permanent change.
Also bought 3 screen protectors just because. They're only US$1.60 anyway due to bulkrate, and one of the reviews mentioned that buying an ipad case might have helped prevent his screen protector from bending due to shitty packaging like the other reviewers.
Since there is no guarantee that I will buy a case and a screen protector at the same time in the future, I thought I'd just hoard 2 spares.
As for the extra US$1.70 that applies for any order using bulkrate prices, a friend also asked for 3 USB extension cables so the total discount managed to offset this extra fee. Nett discount was US$1.12, hence I could say I paid US$0.48 for a third screen protector.
Seriously considering using Skype for my normal calls.
Very seriously. More seriously than the other time when I considered the same possibility.
A monthly subscription for 60 minutes for Singapore-only phone numbers only costs about S$2 although it excludes SMSes. Skype only offers SMS through Skype Credits.
If I use my mobile modem with my iPad and my bluetooth headset...
HMMMMMMMMMM......................
I'm currently paying over S$30 a month for my current mobile plan and about S$100 a month for my mum's mobile plan.
If I switch to using VOIP exclusively, I will still require my mobile numbers and there is no way I can keep them without a postpaid plan at any telco here.
Hmm..
Perhaps I'll get the SunShare plan and pick the cheapest S$19.26 option with a supplementary line of the same plan at S$12.84. And another S$5.35 per line for the Caller ID display service (damn..).
Other than the mere purpose of keeping these numbers, they will serve as backups when 3G isn't available.
This way, I'll only need one smartphone and a generic 2G phone in the future.
If I do this, I'm going to need a backup battery for the iPad, the sort that stores electricity.
But first, I'll need to test the current assumption that I can get decent voice quality via Skype and Starhub's mobile broadband.
Next I'll have to wait till my current contracts have ended before I make the switch. That's going to be like 18 months from now.
If this works, I'll be able to cut down the expenditure in this area by two thirds, and that's not even taking into account the cheaper replacements I'll be getting when my two phones stop working.
Been looking at the batteries on DealExtreme even though I've already made the order. What I've learnt while googling is that although there are plenty of batteries there that claim to be iPad-compatible, they are very slow.
You see, the important detail is the electrical current that has the unit Ampere (A). Since the voltage is always 5V for all the batteries, the current determines the charging speed.
The adapter for all 3 generations of the iPad and can handle up to 2.1A or 2100mA of electrical current.
That's the speed limit.
With the 10W charger provided, I can get a safe current of 2A or 2000mA.
But for non-Apple accessories, they may not necessarily provide 2100mA of current.
For most of the cheapest batteries on DealExtreme (around 10USD apiece), their outputs are less than 800mA. That means they're more for iPhones since they can take 1000mA at most.
But if you stick that into your iPad, the speed compared to using the legit Apple wall charger would be max current output of battery divided by 2000mA, eg 800mA/2000mA. You can see how fast that would be if you have any experience with an iPad.
To me, the capacity doesn't matter as much because if you have to resort to using this backup battery, chances are you won't need a lot of power by then.
So far the cheapest semi-decent battery I've found is this 2800mAh one. With an output of 1500mA, it can charge the iPad for less than 2 hours, about 1 hour and 50mins.
At a charging speed of 1500/2100 of what I'd get from the legit charger, that means using it to its maximum limit is equivalent to charging the tablet normally for (5/7) * (28/15) = 4/3 hours, or 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Since an iPad 2 takes about 4.5 hours to fully charge from empty using the legit wall charger, if I'm using an iPad 2 it would fill (4/3) / (9/2) * 100% = 30% when it's switched off.
iPhones, iPods and iPads all share the same 30-pin connector port for their chargers' adapters except for the iPod Shuffle. It's a proprietary design by Apple and honestly very convenient for Apple fans. The only difference between them, as I had mentioned, is the maximum currents.
Coincidentally there's a similar battery at DinoDirect with a capacity of 2800mAh and a max output current of 2.1A that's priced at US$12.99 (S$16.89) vs US$12.10 for the one from DealExtreme.
Both have no reviews though. That's pretty significant issue.
Whatever. I'll have to look again after I've confirmed that the 3G signal in Singapore can handle Skype. I heard it can't but online results are telling me different.
So holding a gun makes it more likely for the wielder to see other objects as guns.
Brockmole's team ran five experiments with 220 participants. In each, the volunteers held either a foam ball or a firearm (a Wii gun - a type of gun used in videogames - or a disabled carbon-dioxide-powered BB pistol) while images flashed by on a monitor.
Each image, lasting less than a second, showed a person holding a gun or an innocuous object such as a shoe, soda can, or cell phone. The person in the image was either black or white, bare-headed or wearing a black ski mask. In one variation, the participant did not hold a gun, but one was conspicuously placed in the lab.
The mere presence of a gun nearby did not influence how likely people were to mistake a shoe or other innocent object for a gun. But holding a gun was, the scientists report in the upcoming paper.
That's somewhat disturbing. What happens to a woman's perception when she's shopping for dildos?
Perhaps the most notorious real-world example of that was the 1999 killing Amidou Diallo in New York City: the 23-year-old Guinean immigrant was shot 41 times by police officers who perceived him as brandishing a gun. Standing in a dark doorway, Diallo was in fact showing them his wallet.
I wonder how they dealt with it. Not only did they kill him but with 41 shots, they were probably mutilating his corpse as well. I wonder what others would say to him.
"Shit happens. It's ok."
or
"God will forgive you."
or
"You couldn't have known. It's not your fault."
Meanwhile there was a corpse filled with 41 bullets, or bits of them, lying in the morgue, of a man who truly didn't do anything to deserve it.
How incredibly wrong it would feel if someone actually says those things.
The iPad overheats?
I HOPE NOT!
The tablet has an operating temperature range of 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees to 35 degrees Celsius), which is the same as iPad 2.
Engineers at Consumer Reports recorded temperatures as high as 116 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius) on the front and back of the new iPad when plugged in and while playing Infinity Blade II. When unplugged, the tablet's back reached temperatures as high as 113 degrees Fahrenheit.
Not really a huge concern. I doubt I'm going to buy games anyway. Still, if anything else makes it overheat like that, perhaps the extended warranty was a good idea after all.
It's just basic knowledge that overheating ruins electronics.
Oh wow I just remembered I didn't find Zaeed and Kasumi in ME3. WHAT KIND OF SAVE DID I LOAD INTO MY ME3 RUN??
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