The Beanster Blog

Microsoft recently announced their Surface Laptop . The device looks great on video and specs wise it seems like a capable device for the target market (education / ultra-portable) however I am a bit uneasy about the move to a single USB port and the fabric on the keyboard seems like an impending hygiene issue. I am not sure how I feel about Windows S as their response to ChromeOS. It remains to be seen if they will make a dent on Chromebooks market share.  Personally, I would opt to upgrade to the Pro version anyway to get the most out of Windows 10. Let's see what MSFT's partners will cook up now that Microsoft has unveiled their new "hero device". I really think APPL is missing the mark by refusing to add touch capability to their MacBooks screen, the TouchBar isn't really compelling (yet), and I think the devices on the Windows side should capitalize on this. In the end, competition is always great for the consumer :-)

enrolled my @Lumia 650 to @windowsinsider #fastring hope to get 15063.138 before Easter hehe. #windowsmobile — Vincent B Castro (@bnycastro) April 12, 2017 Well after only a few hours of my above tweet hoping to get Windows 10 Mobile Build 15063.138 it is now downloading on my device hehe. I did have to install build 15063.2 before 138 appeared under updates. Will report back on how the update goes... 

I finally got the hard case for my Microsoft Lumia 650. NFC works through the case and it has a lip so you can place the device face down and the screen won't touch the surface. All the cut-outs are there and the case is very affordable. Highly recommended.

Ever since my Lumia 535 got stolen, I have been slumming it with the Lumia 532. I had my eye on the Lumia 650 but unfortunately, Microsoft decided to bail on mobiles for now, and as per the Microsoft Store in SM Megamall, the device would not be sold locally. Both the Lumia 950 and 950XL were very tempting but out of my budget range. Bummer. I still preferred to use Windows 10 Mobile for work and initially I tried to order it via Microsoft's US Store but they don't accept credit cards issued in the Philippines. So I hit eBay and actually got the device including shipping at a lower price, all in I spent less than 9000Php for this device. For the price, the device looks and feels great! Microsoft Lumia 650 in hand Specs: Microsoft Lumia 650 (MSFT website) I got it in black and opted for the Dual SIM variant. It takes nano size SIM cards there's no need for adapters on this one. Like my previous Lumias, it has a microSD expansion slot, I have a 16Gb card in at the ...

I love Windows Phone. I still have a Treo Pro and an HTC S730 and even my first Compaq iPAQ lying around somewhere at home. In a previous post I was really tempted to get a Lumia 950XL what stopped me was the crappy service of Microsoft Philippines (or their distributor). My Lumia 532 has been to the service center twice for LCD issues which are still happening by the way. They refuse to refund me, or give me store credit so I can get another device. vertical dead pixels appear from time to time usually a reboot gets rid of it I guess Microsoft or their distributor refuses to standby their product, so why should I? Also the Lumia 950 XL has been heavily discounted in other territories but not in the Philippines. So I got an iPhone 7 Plus and am still running the Lumia 532 for work, have to reboot it periodically to get rid of the vertical lines that crop up from time to time.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL I am really tempted to get a flagship Windows 10 Mobile device (might be the last for awhile, since the rumored Surface Phone is still uncertain), I am undecided between the Lumia 950 and the 950XL both flagships would be a HUGE upgrade from my Lumia 532 . I reckon since I am not upgrading to the iPhone 7 Plus (the removal of the earphone jack really really bugged me) I can update my secondary device instead. I sold my XiaoMi RedMi 1S earlier this month and have been exclusively using the Lumia 532 as my work device. Yes, I have said good bye to Android for now, my second mobile OS of choice is now Windows Mobile 10. Even if the *new* Microsoft seems less interested in their own mobile OS, Windows Mobile still gets periodic updates. I am really happy with Windows Mobile 10 even with the so-so hardware and the sparse apps, and am curious how the OS performs on beefier specs. I am still keeping my iPhone 6S Plus as my primary, so I'd still have ...

Last Thursday, my Microsoft Lumia 535 got stolen.  As far as I can remember this is the first mobile I have ever lost in 18 years of using cellphones  I tried to use find my phone & to ring it but alas the person who took it turned it off. Calling both numbers on the dual sim device yielded nothing.  All my devices have passcode lock, and I've sent the Lock Command again with a message. So at least my data is safe for the time being, since it's a work phone I have minimal personal info. I've initiated the erase command and hopefully when the person who has it connects it to free wifi it will be locked and my data will be wiped from the device.  It irks me that I no longer have a Windows Phone. I must now move to my XiaoMi RedMi 1S as my work phone, which is an ok phone but I really took a liking to Windows Mobile 10 and it's UI, and I am still uncertain if the exchange email address bug in Android has already been fixed. I loathe the thought of...

Last Sunday, I was lamenting that my Lumia wasn't getting software updates (I regularly check using Phone update in settings). Which was why I was playing with my XiaoMi RedMi 1S (now on MIUI7, it started on MIUI5) which was getting updates almost every other week. My girlfriend remarked about my Lumia. Which prompted me to do some googling on the preview build. As I've written almost a year ago I wasn't too pleased with the earlier builds and had to do a restore . Anyway in my googling I found out that my Lumia 535 had a Windows 10 upgrade but the funny thing is you had to download another app (very similar to the desktop version of the OS) to get the upgrade. My question is why not just push the upgrade via the regular phone update built in to Windows phone 8.1 like what Android or iOS? I did a hard reset (and wiped my SD card too) before updating using the Windows 10 Upgrade Advisor App (available on the Microsoft App Store, search for it on your phone) it took a...

Dateline: July 31st 2015 I have been harping on social media that I would wait a couple of weeks before upgrading the work laptop from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10.  I could not hold on any longer and decided to update it even though I was out in the field.  So I just I installed Windows 10 Single Language on my work machine an ASUS X450L notebook, didn't time the preparation cause I was working. I pressed install  2:24PM , welcome screen by  3:42PM . Not a bad upgrade experience at all. YMMV of course.  -- Live to serve, Aim to please Vincent Benedict P. Castro http://about.me/bnycastro Do or Do Not, There is No Try.

THIS IS A TECHNICAL PREVIEW, BUGS ARE A PART OF IT. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO INSTALL THIS FIRMWARE IF YOU ARE FAINT OF HEART, OR IF YOUR DEVICE IS MISSION CRITICAL. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Windows Phone 10 Tech Preview Updated while I was sleeping As a member of the Windows Insider Program , I was able to get the 1st release of Windows 10 Tech Preview for my Microsoft Lumia 535 Dual SIM. In retrospect I shouldn't have enabled automatic updates with the TP. I knew it was going to be buggy but I guess curiosity got the better of me as it always does with new versions of an OS (I play around with Windows 10 Tech Preview for PCs, iOS firmware betas, and OSX betas)  The 1st tech preview is very buggy if your device is mission critical please do not install it. That being said I am very pleased that Microsoft is going with a wider release on Windows Phone 10.  So as I am typing this I am using the Windows Phone Recovery Tool to rollback to 8.1  waiting for th...

If you're a returning reader you know that I was heavy into PocketPC / Windows Mobile before jumping to iOS & Android. I have been having issues with the RedMi 1S messaging app always crashing, and I have always been curious on how far Microsoft has come after they reset their mobile device program. So the prodigal user returns...  A ( few days) few weeks ago I decided to purchase a Microsoft Lumia 535 Dual SIM. Yes, you read that correctly: Microsoft Lumia, not Nokia. Product page: http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/lumia535-dual-sim/ The orange color was not in stock so I went with boring black. Price ₱ 5,990.00 (US$ 133).  The display is 5in with a resolution of qHD (960 x 540), IPS LCD, all in all it’s ok. The finish feels plasticky and slippery. I suggest you get a case, speaking of cases, I can't find any in both Greenhills and Megamall. Goes the same for screen protectors, so I had to get stuff from eBay, which will take up to a month or more to arrive....

You can now access your Dropbox files directly from Microsoft's Office Mobile apps. (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)