My Tech Situation–June 2014

I write so much I just have those times when I stop altogether. Not out of boredom or out of frustration but out of love. As much as I identify myself as many things the one inescapable truth is that writing is an essential part of who I am. That is why I take breaks, to realize how much I continue to love what I do and what it means to me. I’m back with a new series-My Tech Situation-to share with you what I use, why and what is on the horizon.

Phone: Nokia Lumia 520

This past December I decided to conduct an experiment. I wanted to know if the Lumia 520 could be more than just a nice value add phone. I sold off my beloved Lumia 1020 and took the plunge. It has been almost six months and I can tell you that what I feared is now my reality. Going from a flagship with an amazing camera and joy of the Lumia 1020 to a budget model just doesn’t cut it for me. The lack of RAM is infuriating, HERE Maps constantly freeze up, newer features aren’t compatible with the phone. The plus is that I can see someone who is a pop gen (my term for non-enthusiasts) could really have an enjoyable experience. I don’t believe that the majority of users push their phone as hard and as consistently like I do. I actually use multiple apps at the same time and need for those apps to stay open in the background for quick access. Too many times have I tried to go back and the app has been closed out for lack of memory. Lately I’ve been having tons of problems that go beyond the norm too. I dropped it shortly after installing WP8.1 preview and now it turns itself off, completely off, whenever I put it in my pocket. I end up having to pull the battery to restart it. I was hoping against hope the Lumia 930 would be available so that I could buy it off contract. I’ve been saving my pennies to buy a new phone off contract since I sold my Lumia 1020 but the availability isn’t there and I’m getting more restless and dumbfounded by the day. Next move: Purchase a Lumia 1520 until the proper 1020 successor arrives whenever that may be. I don’t need a mass adoption device. I need a device that is going to be epic in a meaningful way.

Tablet: N/A

I don’t currently own a tablet of any kind. In the recent past I’ve had a Kindle Fire & iPad Mini. Sold them both because they were collecting dust. When I’m at home I’m usually doing email triage on my phone or designing/creating on my laptop. Next move: I’m thinking of picking up an iPad Mini again. Actually I’ll be buying two. I need a couple for my daughters to use during our travels.

Desktop/Laptop: ASUS VivoBook S550C

Specs: Specs Detailed

Picked this Ultrabook up as a Christmas present to myself. It is lightweight and the 15.6” screen provides plenty of screen real estate to get work done. I won’t go into spec details (you can click the link for that) as the important thing is the user experience. If I had to use one adjective to describe my experience it would be meh. That’s right just meh. Strike that, it has been kind of underwhelming. I have to wait way too long for apps and programs to open and internet explorer seems to have not improved at all. It makes it all the more irritating considering I shelled out $1000 for it. Recently I’ve been taking a closer look at how I use my device. Turns out I usually keep somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 tabs open in the desktop Internet Explorer and about 20 in metro Internet Explorer. I will say that I absolutely love having the option to touch my screen and interact with it. I definitely wouldn’t want to reach up all day and have to touch the screen to get work done but at times it is so natural that you do it subconsciously. I like to think of a touch screen on a laptop as a handy utility that is there when you need it. The rest of the time it stays out of the way. Next move: Surface Pro 3 and secondary color calibrated monitor for design work.

The Wrap-Up:

There you have it. A little foray into my current tech situation. Lately I’ve been getting very frustrated with the lack of availability of flagship Windows Phone devices on my chosen network. I am currently avoiding contracts like the plague so I use AT&T’s GoPhone Pre-Paid plan which is really good and a heck of a lot cheaper than what I was paying on contract with AT&T. I made back my ETF for breaking my contract with 3 months of usage on my current $60 Pre-Paid plan. The lag of my ASUS ViVoBook has made me consider a Mac. The Surface Pro 3 is pretty much my last attempt to stick with Windows before I give Apple a chance to earn my bucks. I also currently use a Samsung Galaxy S4 as my secondary media device. It gives me a chance to use and determine all the newest apps and game worth to me and be able to speak intelligently on them.

What is your current tech situation? Any suggestion for me?