The Beanster Blog

I've been bad mouthing the N-series from Nokia for quite awhile now. Now I'm no anti-Nokia zealot but I've always felt that Nokia is taking advantage of it's popularity and coming out with sub-standard mobiles [crippled might be a better term]. For example all Nokia mobiles except for the N8800 [which is not a music phone at all which is odd] does not have A2DP or AVRCP for that matter. They have mobiles with the capable Bluetooth chip but have elected to disable the profile and thus forcing the user to buy an 'enhancement' which is total bull crap IMO. Well I guess I can shut my piehole now as it seems that they have pulled their thumbs out of their assess and come up with 2 new models which support A2DP... Finally something not crippled in some way [hopefully] the N95 and 5300 series. It would be interesting to see how Nokia implements A2DP, I do hope it is way better than the way MS first did it in Windows Mobile devices [or did not do it for that matter]....

Happy Birthday: -- Paulo Canivel Ria Suiza -- May the Force Be With You...

Damn saw Fong's DS Lite! I want one!!! Now I know what Jomz and Chi are talking about that thing is friggin' amazing!!! Gotta save some dough and get me one of those... :P

Happy Birthday -- Philipp Llave -- May the Force Be With You...

Happy Birthday -- Fergus 'Fong' Lao -- May the Force Be With You...

Happy Birthday: -- Leland Fong Karlo Gloria Susan Sy Joyce Tiu -- May the Force Be With You...

Ok ok I probably shouldn't have bought a new mobile... but heck I was missing some important messages and calls when I changed my number. I decided to get a Motorola v3i as it was a quadband phone and it was really cheap already. I really thought I could sync it with outlook just like a PocketPC but I guess I was wrong. I use Motorola Phone Tools to sync my contacts, it get's most of the fields ok but leaves out the images. With 600 plus contacts [more than half have pics] I wasn't prepared to do them all manually, well I guess this mobile will do for now. I really like the slim and sexy form factor, and this one is so lite compared to my main mobile an O2 XDA Exec. Oh yeah this version has i-Tunes which is great if you want to listen to your music next month... I mean the syncing is so slow, I tried using Windows Media Player 11 to sync and it was faster however the tunes would not show up under iTunes [they did show up under Moto's DAP], this is one feature I won'...

Happy Birthday: -- Carol Kua -- May the Force Be With You...

I've flashed my O2 XDA Exec [aka HTC Universal] with a AKU3.2 ROM by Lt. Commander Ivan [xda-dev], I also flashed it with Radio ver 1.13.00 from the Orange ROM, I skipped the Extended ROM and have a pretty clean device. I've synced over my PIM data and am checking if the Radio performs better than the 1.11.00 I previously had on my device. So far so good this AKU3.2 beta 8 ROM seems stable enough and of course I love all the AKU3.2 enhancements especially being able to get rid of the lousy battery that they introduced in AKU2.0

Ofoto [aka Kodak Gallery] is down for some maintenance. So I decided to go ahead and upload the images to my Flickr account. -- Sorry I wasn't able to take as much pics...] Happy Birthday Again to chups and Bon Voyage Mabs! -- http://flickr.com/photos/bnycastro/

Darth Vader... everyone trembles at his presence... -- The Dark Lord of the Sith helping me light up :-)

Happy Birthday -- Sara Denise Mendoza -- May the Force Be With You...

Mabs is leaving for Bankok, Thailand for work... we'll miss ya bro! Ingat sa ladyboys and... The Force Will Be With You Always... :o)

Happy Birthday -- Ralph 'Taukeh' Chua Bryant Chu -- May the Force Be With You...

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: DJ Tatana This is the remixed version of DJ Tatana's artist album Electrify . Now I didn't get to listen to the original album so my review will be based on this remix album only. So let's get cracking... For me, DJ Tatana the swiss trance princess does alright by this album, some pretty strong stuff and great vocals in this remixed edition I wonder if the original album has the same effect? For me this remixed album has a lot of energy which I really like! :o)

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: Ferry Corsten Ferry Corsten [aka System F, Albion, Moonman, 1/2 or Gouryella] is back and he has a tougher sound [or so he says]. L.E.F. stands for Loud Electronic and Ferocious , is something that describes his new artist album and philosophy towards music. I can't help but feel a bit jaded though as this new sound seems like electro-pop/electro-house to me, it seems that it lacks a bit in the 3 adjectives he used. Sure there are some moments in the album that show you why he is one of the best of the best and it also shows his skills in producing/song writting. Personal biases aside this album has some pretty good music in it. I do hope that Corsten will not take the path that Oakey has chosen, which is essentially pop music. Maybe a 3rd or 4th listen to this album will change my mind maybe not. Still Ferry Corsten is one of the premier DJs/Producers in the world and I would consider this album as a tiny mis-step. You are on the...

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: Tiesto feat Maxi Jazz Dance4Life is the anthem for the same group aiming to prevent HIV/AIDS. Tiesto is their new ambassador and Maxi Jazz from Faithless does the vocals on this track. I really like the last 3 tracks the Slow Mix, Global Experience Remix and Fonzerelli Remix. --

Digital Media is really big nowadays, and the boys and girls over at MS are not ignorant to this. I've been hearing a lot about the Zune for the past few months. Hot on the heels of the announcement from Apple. The Zune is out... It boasts some impressive specs and is set to be manufactured by Toshiba. WMA, MP3, AAC, JPEG,WMV, MPEG-4, H.264 media Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) connectivity 30 GB Hard Drive 3 inch video LCD 320x240 White, Black, and Chocolate Colors FM Radio TV output connectivity Dedicated song download site DJ Mode (broadcast what you are listening to) Podcast playback 3 day playback of Wi-Fi transfered songs from friends XBOX streaming XBOX (Microsoft) points compatability Preloaded music videos Over a dozen accessories at launch 5.6 ounces in weight, 4.4 by 2.4 by 0.58 inches size Metric: 158 g, 112 by 61 by 14.7 mm size Is the Zune ready to take on the iPod/iTunes monster? More info at ZuneThoughts and Microsoft

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: Various Artists mixed by DJ SL Another installment of the ITWT series. Listening to the album from the start to end, I would say I enjoyed this album. There were some low points in this album and even some brash mixing [transition from Track 6 to 7]. Overall I think DJ SL did an ok job with the mixing. This album is filled with some great trance tracks and I highly recommend it to trance fans out there reading this blog. Trust in Trance baby!

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: Above & Beyond The debut album of Above & Beyond seems to be more down tempo and slow, which doesn't mean it's bad it just isn't your typical dance floor trance album, you'd have to get the remix releases if you want something a bit on the faster side [this is not a bad idea at all]. It's different and it's good. The album has a good mix of vocal and instrumental trance tracks. By far this is one of the best trance artist albums I've come accross in a long time. Tracks to take notice of are: Stealing Time World on Fire Air for Life Can't Sleep Alone Tonight Indonesia

Category: Music Genre: Dance & DJ Artist: Gabriel & Dresden Josh Gabriel & Dave Dresden, have come up with their first [self-titled] artist album. The name Gabriel & Dresden might sound familiar to you as the duo have been remixing and producing some awesome trance and progressive tunes. Molly Bancroft [US] and Jan Burton [UK] lend their vocals to the duo's album. The album is a feast for the ears, and will be holding a solid spot on my device for awhile.

The 3rd installment in the Windows Mobile Powered palm family [Verizon Treo 700w, Sprint Treo 700wx were the first two] has been released for Europe. Vodafone and palm team up to for the Treo 750v. -- Some specs: 300mhz Processor Quadband GSM/GPRS and Tri-band UMTS Bluetooth w/ A2DP miniSD QWERTY 240 x 240 resolution no WiFi no Antenna -- I am waiting for palm to release this Treo unbranded to Asia. Image courtesy of PPCThoughts.

Happy Birthday -- Beatrice Arano Rachel Carpio -- May the Force Be With You...

Paul over at modaco, has posted an interesting article about the HTC Omni the device that is supposed to replace the HTC Universal [O2 XDA Exec, i-mate JASJAR, Dopod 900 et al]. Rumour has it will have VGA, 3.5G, be thinner, maybe use a Samsung processor instead of Intel, and will have atleast WM5 AKU3. All in all intriguing stuff. It would be nice to see what HTC will do with the highly sucessful Universal form factor. I think we would be lucky if we get this Q2 of 2007... still pictures would be nice [even computer renders hehehe] -- link to Paul's article

Ok now I'm really confused on which mobile to get next. I was set on the HTC Excalibur [aka O2 cosmo, HTC S620] but seeing the i-mate JAQ makes me want to wait for a 3G version of it, I'd rather have a WM 5 PocketPC Phone Ed than a Smartphone cause I have far more applications for PocketPC Phone Ed, but then again nothing is coming close to my perfect device yet. The JAQ falls short on 2 very important components the processor and data connectivity departments. I do hope that the manufacturer will churn out an updated version after all 3G is being rolled out in more and more locations around the world. Then of course there is the HTC Hermes [aka dopod CHT9000, HTC TyTn, i-mate JASJAM, dopod 838pro et al], which fits my criteria except again for the moving parts [it has a slider similar to the Wizard] and reports of it being buggy is putting me off [hopefully ROM updates are released soon to fix these issues]. So for now I am stuck with my O2 XDA Exec with dopod ROM and my...

This is something a bit more interesting also from i-mate. -- It's called the i-mate JAQ, this one has Windows Mobile 5 PocketPC Phone Edition. -- It looks a bit ugly but it is the form factor I was hoping for as it has landscape display and a full QWERTY keyboard with no moving parts. I'd get this in a heartbeat if it had 3G or 3.5G and a more robust processor. -- Some specs: TI OMAP 850 200mhz [yikes! it's the same as the Wizard's might be a bit underpowered for a PPC PE] 64Mb RAM/128Mb ROM Quadband GSM/GPRS/EDGE [world phone but no 3G or 3.5G] Bluetooth 1.2 [not sure about A2DP] Landscape Touchscreen qVGA display QWERTY keyboard miniUSB [11 pins unsure if this is the same with my current device] miniSD Expansion no WiFi [not a big deal if it had 3 or 3.5G but it doesn't!] no Camera [not a big deal] -- All in all this could have been a great PPC PE if it had a faster processor and highspeed data. Pity that it falls short in these departments. Also i-mate should ...

Here's something out of i-mate it's the SPL. -- It looks like a Moto SLVR knockoff but it features Windows Mobile 5 for Smartphone. -- Some specs: TI OMAP 730 200mhz Processor 64Mb RAM/128Mb ROM Tri-band GSM/GPRS [no EDGE, 3G or 3.5G] Bluetooth 1.2 [dunno if it supports A2DP] miniSD Expansion qVGA display [portrait 240x320] miniUSB [used for syncing and audio input/output - I hate non-standard jacks for audio] 12 mm thickness [slim profile] 2MP Camera no WiFi [not a big deal if it had 3 or 3.5G but it doesn't!] -- Apart from being slim and having WM5 there really isn't anything that special about this mobile. It is good to see more choices though. Choices are definitely good. -- More info: i-mate website

The first one was in Luzon, didn't feel it though.... This morning I saw that there was another EQ last night this time in the Mindanao area. -- I didn't feel this one either even if it was closer to the surface and stronger in magnitude it was farther off. Now I am not sure what these quakes mean but I do find them interesting.

Happy Birthday -- Zion Laterre -- May the Force Be With You...

Apple is at it again, they've re-worked their iPod line again... this time they add an even smaller Shuffle, reshape the Nano and bump it up to a max of 8Gb, adding colors and changing the body/finish of the Nano, they also get rid of the 60Gb and replace it with an 80Gb Video iPod. Better screens, better battery life, and the most exciting feature IMO is gapless playback [wow!]... Among other things iTunes 7 is out as well. Don't go off selling your iPod just yet we don't know when it will hit our part of the world just yet. More info at: apple.com

Could this device be my 2nd mobile? The HTC Excalibur aka O2 cosmo [Germany], HTC S620 [Europe], is a Windows Mobile Smartphone. It has Quadband GSM/GPRS/EDGE, a 240 x 320 qVGA landscape display, QWERTY Keyboard, WiFi, BT with A2DP, microSD expansion and a JOGGR Strip. Dopod Asia Pacific is still to announce the Excalibur so I am still waiting. I can't say I'm in a hurry as I am still quite fond of my Universal [O2 XDA Exec variant with Dopod WWE ROM]. I wonder if getting this device would be advisable though as it lacks 3G which Globe and SMART are deploying [although I don't know how rapidly Globe is doing it's deployment, for a fact I know SMART has better coverage and rates ATM]. I also got myself a brand new 4Gb SD Card which will not fit the Excalibur... My Universal might permanently take my SMART pre-paid SIM and become my WEB and Media device. While the Excalibur can take up phone duties ideally, I do wonder if I can live without the VGA and touchscreen though....

Happy Birthday -- Marie Afuang -- May the Force Be With You...

Happy Birthday: -- Rose Py Boyle Chewy Chua -- May the Force Be With You...

Happy Birthday: -- Tanya Cuaso Michael Sun -- May the Force Be With You...

Happy Birthday -- Charmaine Lui Pio Eric Paraiso -- May the Force Be With You...

NEW THEME -- Beach Angel -- Inlcudes: Aya - Sean [Mig's Salted Vocal].mp3 ringtone. -- Available now dA at and coming soon to M9. -- Some screenshots: [Standby] [Desktop Menu]

Happy Birthday -- Enrique "Ching" Yoingco -- May the Force Be With You...

NEW THEME -- Tokyo Disco -- Inspired by Tokyo Disco Compilations -- Includes - Samantha James - Rise.mp3 ringtone. -- available now at dA for m9 validation. -- Some screenshots: [standby] [desktop]

NEW THEME -- Es Vive 2006 -- Inspired by Es Vive 2006 Compilations [ www.fierceangels.com ] -- Animated Standby. -- Includes: Bob Sinclar ft Steve Edwards - World, Hold On [Children of the Sky].mp3 ringtone. -- available now at dA and awaiting validation at m9. Screenshots: [Standby] [Desktop]

Steve Irwin, The Crocodile Hunter, is dead. He was stung by a Stingray while shooting a documentary in Australia... more info at CNN.com I really liked Steve Irwin, he was a hell of a funny guy that really loved animals it's ironic [but not really suprising] that the fearless Irwin was killed by an animal.

Played CS [Counter Strike] awhile ago it was pretty intense as all of us haven't been playin in awhile. Everyone was happy blasting away hehehe... Fire in the hole!

Just got home from an awesome gimmick! Damn I've almost forgotten how to have fun, but of course ACP has came through again and set me straight, I wish we got together under better circumstances but still this night/early AM gimmick is just what I needed... been really stressed out lately and tonight it was the last thing on my mind. ACP is the best 'barkada' [group of friends] you could ever have! Nuf said! P.S. Mabs and Vans kayo lang wala! SAYANG!!!

[Updated: 11/28/2006] A post over at www.theunwired.net got me thinking on what would be the perfect device: -- Here it is: Connectivity: Quadband GSM/EDGE/GPRS & UMTS [HSDPA if possible] WiFi 802.11b or higher Bluetooth w/ A2DP miniUSB 5 pin [USB 2.0 atleast] 3.5mm audio jack [2.5mm acceptable] -- OS/UI/Navigation/Screen: WindowsMobile 5 for PocketPC Phone Ed [atleast AKU 3] QWERTY [w/ backlight of course] Touchscreen Input QVGA [minimum] Screen size [atleast 2.5 inches nothing smaller] -- Memory/Expansion/Processor/Battery Power: Hot Swappable [doesn't matter what format as long as it is not one of SONY's] 64Mb RAM/128Mb ROM [minimum, MORE would be better] Minimum 400Mhz [more is better no TI OMAP's unless they are over 200mhz] The Battery should atleast last 2 days [minimum of 1 day]. -- Weight/Size/Volume/Form Factor/Look: Smaller/Lighter the better but not really an issue as long as I get the stuff above. The least number of moving parts possible. It has to look ni...

Ok. I really want to stick with Globe [I've been a subscriber since forever] anyway I decided to test out UMTS here at the office [Concepcion, Marikina]. To my surprise I got pretty decent speeds sitting here on my desk. Now if these results can be replicated I am unsure [I'm sure my bill is uber high already since I got the push email going...]. I did 3 tests using BBR [Broad Band Reports] I downloaded 1Mb worth of data and did screen captures of the results page. On the average I got 242Kbit/sec... not bad really. Getting these results made me really interested in the Visibility plan offered to corporate accounts by Globe. I hope this was not just a fluke... -- Screenshots of Results Page: [test 1] [test 2] [test 3]

Out of boredom I decided to do some spring cleaning on my Exec... and I thought what the heck why not try out another ROM. The logical choice of course was the Dopod 900 ROM as I reside in Asia. Did a hard reset, went into bootloader, I got the Dopod 900 ROM and loaded it to my Exec with no hitches [took about 20 minutes]. Now I have an Exec with a Dopod 900 ROM :D No more O2 crap and the Autoconfig now has the most common telcos for Asia and the Pacific. Perfect! now it's easier to swap SIMs, until I decide to change telco's or get the unlimitted data plan from Globe [only offered to corporate accounts peeps]. I've loaded my apps and have done my tweaks/hacks. Happy to report that the A2DP hack is also working with this ROM. So far so good. It also seems that I am getting better reception with this Radio ROM [1.11]. My device is really snappy now as most of the crap files and reg entries left over from the past 3 months have been cleaned out. :P -- [ROM Info :P] -- [Memory...