I love how one person assumes that another hasn't carefully considered something, just because that other person didn't reach the same conclusion. Obviously you're right, there's no other way, because you've *thought about it*!!
I don't see why big N would actually be screwed in 5 years... sure Sony and MS will soon have (but don't yet) motion-based control, but how is it going to be applied to games? We have yet to see, and the way things are now, their motion controllers are going to be high-priced accessories that may never catch on. Nintendo built the system around the motion control and sold it that way from the get-go to both the users and developers.
Also, as others have mentioned, Nintendo will have a new console at some point in the future, definitely in less than 5 years. They never said that the Wii would be the last console you ever need to buy.
In this generation of the console wars, while Sony and MS focused on beefing up their expensive hardware, Nintendo built a simple system with very unique aspects, and did it cheaply enough to massively undercut the other consoles in price (at least initially) while still making a profit on each console sold, and selling tons of copies of really fun first-party titles. Now they have plenty of money in their war chests to reinvest in a new, higher power system. And the next console will come out at a time where more users own HD displays, so N will most likely be catering to that this time around.
And just because the company denies that it's working on a new system doesn't mean they don't have their engineers working hard on research and development, and building prototypes and stuff. Obviously they're not going to admit to something new until they have something concrete to announce. They're going to time that announcement so that it doesn't interrupt the momentum they have going. They're still selling lots of consoles and making billions of dollars in profits each year, even in a tough economy, why would they interrupt that to tell everyone that they're going to be switching focus to a new system? They'll wait to announce and release a new console until there is a need for a new console. And by waiting, they'll have bigger and better technologies to incorporate. At this point in time, and in the forseeable future, where they have made steady profits for several years straight, and most likely have plenty of new ideas up their sleeves, they are most definitely not screwed.
I thought it was funny, although you did forget the "Ima let you finish", and you probably should have repeated "OF ALL TIME!" just like that at the end.
I agree with the guy saying it's nor malice, but I don't think it's exactly ignorance either. I think it's saying what needs to be said to win, the same as any other candidate for public office does.
And I still stand by my vote for Obama, even though I recognize that many things that were promised aren't happening (some of them haven't happened yet, but may still), and that some of his goals don't line up with what I believe is right. I stand by it because I believe that McCain would have been no better, and in fact somewhat worse. His stumbling over dealing with economic issues (before and after the meltdown), his commitment to the bailout, and his selection of Sarah Palin as running mate (who is a serious amplification of all the worst qualities of Obama, but with different political ideals, e.g., worshipped by her following but has very little experience) showed me that although Obama was very much not ideal, McCain was very much worse.
I will personally be waiting for the next gen to come around. It will most likely be like the iPhone was. First model was ok but the later were much better...
This is only the first gen for the hardware of the device, which already includes 3G (T-Mobile only, though), which wasn't available on the iPhone until the 2nd gen. The 3rd Gen iPhone added performance improvements, hardware-wise, but it wasn't fixing any design flaws in the device. Also, as far as hardware goes, it's built by HTC, and isn't a huge departure from the general design of HTC's other handsets, so there's not likely to be many hardware snags.
As far as software goes though, the Android platform is already on its second generation, and out of that, this is the second Android phone to use Android 2.x.
So basically, this (along with the Droid) is the next gen Android phone.
Actually, T-Mobile has a different set of plans for unsubsidized phones with no contract, it's called Even More Plus (as opposed to their Even More plans, which do include phone subsidies). I believe the unsubsidized plans are roughly $10 cheaper per month for the same amounts of minutes, SMS, data, etc. That should save you about $240 off the cost of your service over 2 years.
I don't know of other carriers that have unsubsidized plans, though.
I think that if you're talking to the phone itself, telling it what you want to "type", you're going to speak more slowly and more carefully than if you're leaving a voicemail, where you're just rattling off whatever you have to say in a hurry.
Doesn't T-Mobile pro-rate the ETF, as well? So if you're ok with T-Mobile for a while, but then decide to change your mind, you'll be out less than paying the price to buy it outright.
Of course, that doesn't matter much if there's no other carrier to take your phone to that will support it over 3G. If you don't mind AT&T and you don't mind EDGE, then it's alright though.
For now it's not VoIP, but they've previously worked with gizmo5 to provide (limited) "free" VoIP service using a Google Voice number, and recently bought gizmo5, so that's why there are a lot of questions about VoIP... Google now owns a VoIP company, and seeing as how they were about to release "the real Google phone", there have been a lot of rumors about how they're going to put the pieces together. The wildest rumors involved Google making its own network which would be either very cheap or free, using VoIP along with ad-subsidies.
The real point was that the config utility, whether it be GUI or CLI based, will clobber hand-modifications, not whether or not a GUI utility will clobber them. I know he talked about GUI utilities, but he was referring to automated utilities in general.
As a "free market" customer, my goal is to find the best deal for myself, not to see the logic of the seller's pricing or policies.
If those policies affect other aspects of your service, then you may be interested in the logic behind them. If one company has higher fees, but provides a more robust network, and if that is important to you, you may still choose that provider. If another company has high prices but excellent customer service, that may be important to you.
There's more to economics than price. It's all about what you get in exchange for what you give. Not only does the money you pay upfront and monthly make up what you give the service provider, but the contract (a guarantee to continue to pay more money or else pay an ETF) is a part of what you give, so it should be a part of your decision. But what you get back is more than just phone service, so you have to consider all of that as well.
I've had T-Mobile unlock two phones for me. You just have to be 3 months into your contract, then either call them or e-mail them, and they'll send you the unlock code within a couple of days. No need to be sneaky.
It's my understanding that with the new settings, the user is prompted via a wizard to either use the new default or keep the settings the way they are. Once you have completed the wizard, you can then make more granular changes. At least that's what I remember reading on Lifehacker
The part that bothered me is that it costs more to call your aunt who lives 50 miles away than to call your grandma who lives 150 miles away.
Now with VoIP and cell phones neither local toll nor long distance make any sense.
I know a lot of the discussion of the dangers here are about the TV aspect of all of this, but here's something else that concerns me:
I watched some of Glenn Beck's "coverage" of Net Neutrality on YouTube once, and was shocked at how he pretty much left out what net neutrality actually means, added in a bunch of negative stuff that doesn't have anything to do with neutrality and told some lies that were somewhat related to neutrality. He complains that companies like Google are hypocrites because those guys made billions off of capitalism and now they supposedly want the government to steal control of the Internet from private industry (according to Beck).
So now that the only broadband ISP available in my area will own the majority of shares in the company that owns Glenn Beck's rival network, who's to say that Comcast won't degrade or charge me more to access either the Fox News channel on TV, or the Fox News website or Glenn Beck's or Rush Limbaugh's websites?
Why is it that Glenn Beck can be so paranoid about little things the government does, or could do, but he doesn't realize how his own viewpoints and lies can sell out our freedoms to the people who are the gatekeepers of TV and the Internet?
If separate long distance service blows your mind, then wait 'till you hear about "local toll". That would normally be a call that's within the same state, so your LD service doesn't cover it, but it's not in your metropolitan area, so your local phone provider charges you by the minute... but usually at a higher rate than an actual long distance call.
I remember running into that in college and being totally pissed at the phone company (Qwest). For the next few years, Qwest gave me tons more reasons to hate them. I switched to Vonage (now I'm on T-Mobile's @Home service for $10/month), and I'll never go back to crappy Qwest again.
It's true that boxee deals with non-recorded TV shows much better than MythVideo does, but I don't use that functionality that often, and Myth Video does it just well enough that the convenience of not having to launch a separate program, login, then navigate through a few pages to select a movie is worth it.
One thing about the Hulu Desktop solution... it is set up to be able to deal with a remote (using lirc in linux), but it aims for Apple Remote simplicity (the only functions available are the ones on an Apple remote), so the remote functionality is pretty basic, and it's implemented in kind of a confusing way. Also, for some reason it always starts auto-playing some recent episode of shows I never watch as soon as the program starts, and that program keeps playing in the corner of the screen as you browse for something you actually do want to watch. You can pause it, but it's still there. I guess they're trying to make it be like the TV experience, which is weird, since they specifically forbid you from using it on a dedicated TV appliance.
There are companies that offer Number 3, but I think they're all pretty expensive as they tend to tailor to the high-end custom markets, although supposedly it's possible to get your own CableCard tuner without going through an OEM now. Probably still expensive, and it will probably never work with anything outside of Windows Media Center, but it is a possibility.
I was doing that for a while, but Hulu's insistence on blocking boxee got annoying, and that was the only thing I was really using boxee for. Now that Hulu has its own linux client, I call that up from the Myth menu instead. It's technically against the terms of service to use the Hulu Desktop software on any type of appliance like that, but I don't lose sleep over it.
I would not have known about the ACORN scandal where they advise their customers to cover-up illegal prostitution houses, and file false claims with the IRS.
When has it ever been shown that ACORN has actually done that? I know of a couple of instances where undercover "journalists" have pretended to be running such houses, but I know of no instances where ACORN employees have actually helped someone who really was running such a house. This "sting" operation was pure entrapment, and I'm sure you'll find people in many impoverished neighborhoods who would help such people, whether the people in question are ACORN employees or not. Not to mention the fact that the people with the hidden camera went to a lot of ACORN offices and only had 2 where someone tried to help them.
If employees from 2 different Target stores help me steal products, does that make Target corrupt? Furthermore, I'd be willing to bet that more sitting Congressmen (in either party taken separately) have supported brothels than ACORN workers.
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I love how one person assumes that another hasn't carefully considered something, just because that other person didn't reach the same conclusion. Obviously you're right, there's no other way, because you've *thought about it*!!
I don't see why big N would actually be screwed in 5 years... sure Sony and MS will soon have (but don't yet) motion-based control, but how is it going to be applied to games? We have yet to see, and the way things are now, their motion controllers are going to be high-priced accessories that may never catch on. Nintendo built the system around the motion control and sold it that way from the get-go to both the users and developers.
Also, as others have mentioned, Nintendo will have a new console at some point in the future, definitely in less than 5 years. They never said that the Wii would be the last console you ever need to buy.
In this generation of the console wars, while Sony and MS focused on beefing up their expensive hardware, Nintendo built a simple system with very unique aspects, and did it cheaply enough to massively undercut the other consoles in price (at least initially) while still making a profit on each console sold, and selling tons of copies of really fun first-party titles. Now they have plenty of money in their war chests to reinvest in a new, higher power system. And the next console will come out at a time where more users own HD displays, so N will most likely be catering to that this time around.
And just because the company denies that it's working on a new system doesn't mean they don't have their engineers working hard on research and development, and building prototypes and stuff. Obviously they're not going to admit to something new until they have something concrete to announce. They're going to time that announcement so that it doesn't interrupt the momentum they have going. They're still selling lots of consoles and making billions of dollars in profits each year, even in a tough economy, why would they interrupt that to tell everyone that they're going to be switching focus to a new system? They'll wait to announce and release a new console until there is a need for a new console. And by waiting, they'll have bigger and better technologies to incorporate. At this point in time, and in the forseeable future, where they have made steady profits for several years straight, and most likely have plenty of new ideas up their sleeves, they are most definitely not screwed.
I thought it was funny, although you did forget the "Ima let you finish", and you probably should have repeated "OF ALL TIME!" just like that at the end.
I agree with the guy saying it's nor malice, but I don't think it's exactly ignorance either. I think it's saying what needs to be said to win, the same as any other candidate for public office does.
And I still stand by my vote for Obama, even though I recognize that many things that were promised aren't happening (some of them haven't happened yet, but may still), and that some of his goals don't line up with what I believe is right. I stand by it because I believe that McCain would have been no better, and in fact somewhat worse. His stumbling over dealing with economic issues (before and after the meltdown), his commitment to the bailout, and his selection of Sarah Palin as running mate (who is a serious amplification of all the worst qualities of Obama, but with different political ideals, e.g., worshipped by her following but has very little experience) showed me that although Obama was very much not ideal, McCain was very much worse.
Way to blow your whole plan by publishing it on the Internet.
I will personally be waiting for the next gen to come around. It will most likely be like the iPhone was. First model was ok but the later were much better...
This is only the first gen for the hardware of the device, which already includes 3G (T-Mobile only, though), which wasn't available on the iPhone until the 2nd gen. The 3rd Gen iPhone added performance improvements, hardware-wise, but it wasn't fixing any design flaws in the device. Also, as far as hardware goes, it's built by HTC, and isn't a huge departure from the general design of HTC's other handsets, so there's not likely to be many hardware snags.
As far as software goes though, the Android platform is already on its second generation, and out of that, this is the second Android phone to use Android 2.x.
So basically, this (along with the Droid) is the next gen Android phone.
Actually, T-Mobile has a different set of plans for unsubsidized phones with no contract, it's called Even More Plus (as opposed to their Even More plans, which do include phone subsidies). I believe the unsubsidized plans are roughly $10 cheaper per month for the same amounts of minutes, SMS, data, etc. That should save you about $240 off the cost of your service over 2 years.
I don't know of other carriers that have unsubsidized plans, though.
Is Arkansas' sales tax really over 9%? Whoah.
I think that if you're talking to the phone itself, telling it what you want to "type", you're going to speak more slowly and more carefully than if you're leaving a voicemail, where you're just rattling off whatever you have to say in a hurry.
Doesn't T-Mobile pro-rate the ETF, as well? So if you're ok with T-Mobile for a while, but then decide to change your mind, you'll be out less than paying the price to buy it outright.
Of course, that doesn't matter much if there's no other carrier to take your phone to that will support it over 3G. If you don't mind AT&T and you don't mind EDGE, then it's alright though.
For now it's not VoIP, but they've previously worked with gizmo5 to provide (limited) "free" VoIP service using a Google Voice number, and recently bought gizmo5, so that's why there are a lot of questions about VoIP... Google now owns a VoIP company, and seeing as how they were about to release "the real Google phone", there have been a lot of rumors about how they're going to put the pieces together. The wildest rumors involved Google making its own network which would be either very cheap or free, using VoIP along with ad-subsidies.
I think the submitter plans on not using it, and most likely submitted the story to inform others, should they wish to not use it as well.
"This Zune HD isn't as good as the i*** T*****. I wish I could hook it up to my M** instead of my PC."
The real point was that the config utility, whether it be GUI or CLI based, will clobber hand-modifications, not whether or not a GUI utility will clobber them. I know he talked about GUI utilities, but he was referring to automated utilities in general.
As a "free market" customer, my goal is to find the best deal for myself, not to see the logic of the seller's pricing or policies.
If those policies affect other aspects of your service, then you may be interested in the logic behind them. If one company has higher fees, but provides a more robust network, and if that is important to you, you may still choose that provider. If another company has high prices but excellent customer service, that may be important to you.
There's more to economics than price. It's all about what you get in exchange for what you give. Not only does the money you pay upfront and monthly make up what you give the service provider, but the contract (a guarantee to continue to pay more money or else pay an ETF) is a part of what you give, so it should be a part of your decision. But what you get back is more than just phone service, so you have to consider all of that as well.
I've had T-Mobile unlock two phones for me. You just have to be 3 months into your contract, then either call them or e-mail them, and they'll send you the unlock code within a couple of days. No need to be sneaky.
It's my understanding that with the new settings, the user is prompted via a wizard to either use the new default or keep the settings the way they are. Once you have completed the wizard, you can then make more granular changes. At least that's what I remember reading on Lifehacker
The part that bothered me is that it costs more to call your aunt who lives 50 miles away than to call your grandma who lives 150 miles away. Now with VoIP and cell phones neither local toll nor long distance make any sense.
Actually, I'd be more concerned that they'll block or degrade non-NBC sources of Internet video.
I know a lot of the discussion of the dangers here are about the TV aspect of all of this, but here's something else that concerns me:
I watched some of Glenn Beck's "coverage" of Net Neutrality on YouTube once, and was shocked at how he pretty much left out what net neutrality actually means, added in a bunch of negative stuff that doesn't have anything to do with neutrality and told some lies that were somewhat related to neutrality. He complains that companies like Google are hypocrites because those guys made billions off of capitalism and now they supposedly want the government to steal control of the Internet from private industry (according to Beck).
So now that the only broadband ISP available in my area will own the majority of shares in the company that owns Glenn Beck's rival network, who's to say that Comcast won't degrade or charge me more to access either the Fox News channel on TV, or the Fox News website or Glenn Beck's or Rush Limbaugh's websites?
Why is it that Glenn Beck can be so paranoid about little things the government does, or could do, but he doesn't realize how his own viewpoints and lies can sell out our freedoms to the people who are the gatekeepers of TV and the Internet?
If separate long distance service blows your mind, then wait 'till you hear about "local toll". That would normally be a call that's within the same state, so your LD service doesn't cover it, but it's not in your metropolitan area, so your local phone provider charges you by the minute... but usually at a higher rate than an actual long distance call.
I remember running into that in college and being totally pissed at the phone company (Qwest). For the next few years, Qwest gave me tons more reasons to hate them. I switched to Vonage (now I'm on T-Mobile's @Home service for $10/month), and I'll never go back to crappy Qwest again.
It's true that boxee deals with non-recorded TV shows much better than MythVideo does, but I don't use that functionality that often, and Myth Video does it just well enough that the convenience of not having to launch a separate program, login, then navigate through a few pages to select a movie is worth it.
One thing about the Hulu Desktop solution... it is set up to be able to deal with a remote (using lirc in linux), but it aims for Apple Remote simplicity (the only functions available are the ones on an Apple remote), so the remote functionality is pretty basic, and it's implemented in kind of a confusing way. Also, for some reason it always starts auto-playing some recent episode of shows I never watch as soon as the program starts, and that program keeps playing in the corner of the screen as you browse for something you actually do want to watch. You can pause it, but it's still there. I guess they're trying to make it be like the TV experience, which is weird, since they specifically forbid you from using it on a dedicated TV appliance.
64 cores ought to be enough for anyone.
There are companies that offer Number 3, but I think they're all pretty expensive as they tend to tailor to the high-end custom markets, although supposedly it's possible to get your own CableCard tuner without going through an OEM now. Probably still expensive, and it will probably never work with anything outside of Windows Media Center, but it is a possibility.
I was doing that for a while, but Hulu's insistence on blocking boxee got annoying, and that was the only thing I was really using boxee for. Now that Hulu has its own linux client, I call that up from the Myth menu instead. It's technically against the terms of service to use the Hulu Desktop software on any type of appliance like that, but I don't lose sleep over it.
I would not have known about the ACORN scandal where they advise their customers to cover-up illegal prostitution houses, and file false claims with the IRS.
When has it ever been shown that ACORN has actually done that? I know of a couple of instances where undercover "journalists" have pretended to be running such houses, but I know of no instances where ACORN employees have actually helped someone who really was running such a house. This "sting" operation was pure entrapment, and I'm sure you'll find people in many impoverished neighborhoods who would help such people, whether the people in question are ACORN employees or not. Not to mention the fact that the people with the hidden camera went to a lot of ACORN offices and only had 2 where someone tried to help them.
If employees from 2 different Target stores help me steal products, does that make Target corrupt? Furthermore, I'd be willing to bet that more sitting Congressmen (in either party taken separately) have supported brothels than ACORN workers.