I called on my data provider from my tablet first to see what they have to offer.  Every phone I liked turned out to be a smart phone.  My provider starts data at $30 a month for 2 gigabytes; that is easy for me to stay under.  Except I already have a data plan and a smart phone requires another data plan.  Buying a phone could cost a few hundred dollars to free if I picked a not-so-good phone.  The voice plan for unlimited is $79.99, so I rounded things up to figure what I would pay monthly.  $80 for voice, $30(30) (data for tablet and phone) equals $140.  Way too much money for me to put out on a phone of any sort.  I’m not about to go around with my seven-inch tablet making Skype calls to everyone either.  My provider hit me $70 for voice, $10 for 1000 messages, $30 for data on the phone, and $30 for data on my tablet.  My provider also wanted me to pay $125 deposit because I haven’t had a phone with them before.  It was very difficult to keep this sentence free of obscenities.

It didn’t matter if I signed a two-year contract and paid money unless I paid the full price for the phone. Paying three or four hundred dollars for a phone is not something I will ever do.  I grew up with the rotary phone and the party line type of phone service.  The prices charged today for cell phones seem to come from someone’s delusional dreams.  I found myself included in the nightmare through no real fault of my own.  I first shunned twisted pair phone service when it started costing $45 to $50 dollars a month.  Costs kept going up and there was no changes made that I could see or read about.  I switched to voice over IP to reduce cost and thumb my nose at the terrestrial phone services.  My internet provider wooed me to their voip service and I readily took their bundled service.  When the bundle time limit came, the bill for voip went to the same as the local phone providers. I ditched them for a different voip that is much cheaper.  My only problem with voice over ip is when electricity is gone, so is your phone.  If there is an internet outage your phone service is out too.  That is why I got the bright idea of going totally cellular.

I found most the cell phones I liked are smartphones and too costly.  I did find a few feature phones I could tolerate.  I would still get slammed with $70 for unlimited voice and $10 a month for 1000 messages.  Those prices are unacceptable to me and I had to pay the $125 deposit still.  Then I discovered prepaid phones and $50 unlimited plans.  I found the honest truth my provider had been trying to tell me the whole time when I saw the prepaid offerings.  The truth as I see it; they will sell me crap starting at $50 a month for service and I have to pay for a very inferior phone.  The rest of the truth is selling off feature phones and stocks very few messaging phones that are not smart phones.  The only conclusion I could draw is my provider only wants to sell smart phones.  Smart phones aren’t so bad such as they are.

Really though, what need does the average person have for a smart phone?  Feature phones used to do all the things smart phones do except office applications.  Smart phones manage to do more than feature phones because they have an operating system that applications are written for.  Feature phones also have operating systems, but few applications are written for and made available for them.  My feature phone isn’t something I would call the ultimate phone.  I can surf the web some and do a number of other things similar to a smart phone. I can take a picture and manipulate it a few different ways.  Most of the other things on my feature phone are gimmicks designed to get me to pay them more.  I do have Bluetooth and some web browsing along with messaging.  I can use IM or text messaging all types because of the plan package I have.  The reason I don’t want a smart phone is I have a tablet that does all the smart phone things and I can see the screen.

The biggest disclosure I have is my Galaxy Tab I purchased through Verizon for less than $100 and a two-year contract.  That means I had to get a data plan through Verizon and their lowest plan starts at $30.  I pay them that fee for two gigabytes usage per month.  It is easy to use that much a month, but I have a WiFi router at home and I don’t travel much and use the 3G connection much.  I’ve already related what Verizon wanted for a phone with a contract plus a deposit.  The phones Verizon had to offer in their prepaid offerings are pathetic.  Sprint isn’t a company I’ll consider and neither is T-mobile.  Since I rejected Sprint I also rejected nearly all the contract cell phone services in my area.  I couldn’t find a phone I liked with them anyway.

I decided to take a look at AT&T.  I didn’t have much success other than finding more cell phones I liked.  I still ended up with a contract phone that would cost $80 to $90 a month plus a deposit over $100 dollars.  I browsed the web site and clicked on the magic words of prepaid.  I found a much wider selection of phones and even cheaper data fees.  For now AT&T will sell you 200 megabytes of data for $15 dollars.  To put that charge into perspective look at Verizon’s minimum $30 charge for 2 gigabytes of data.  By Verizon standards 1 gigabyte would cost $15 which means AT&T is grossly over charging for one fifth of a gigabyte.  AT&T charges $25 for 2 gigabytes of data.  Using AT&T rate for 2000 megabytes of data for $25.00 we end up at $.0125 per megabyte.  Calculating $15 for 200 megabytes of data is $.075 per megabyte.  Going further 4 gigabytes of data will cost $45.  The per megabyte charge there is $.01125.  That is a nice price break, or is it?  If multiplied by 2000 megabytes it comes to $22.50, but it would be a few dollars at 200 megabytes.  All of this math won’t help my price points though.

The first prepaid phone I picked out on AT&T turned out to be a smart phone.  I picked out a prepaid calling plan of $50 dollars giving me unlimited talk, text, and data (non-smart phone data) all nation wide.  All I had to do was pick a phone I could live with.  I wanted a step up from the flip phone I have and I chose a touch phone.  Looking back I may have done just as well with a slider phone.  I didn’t want buttons on the surface of the phone for accidental dialing.  All screens lock, so it doesn’t really matter.  I ended up with a phone that is OK for texting with a virtual keyboard.  The real kicker is the price point.  I paid $100 for the phone which is a one time charge.

What I learned is the phones on contract are newer versions usually costing $200 and up.  The calling plans are more expensive, but you can’t get all the items on prepaid.  I prefer the prepaid deal because I can buy another phone if I want without worry of a contract problem.  People that do use contract phones can get the latest phone provided they are at a point where their contract allows it.  I view buying a phone at low-cost on a contract the same as serving two years jail time.  I bought my tablet on contract because I know it will take a few years for the tablet market to actually evolve for me to want a new tablet.  My opinion on some cell phone prices is Occupy Wall Street should be holding rallies on iPhone and other smart phone prices.

What I found out today took me by surprise when  I got a human at AT&T.  The data pricing for the prepaid is different.  $5 for 10 megabytes, $15 for 100 megabytes, and $25 for 500 megabytes.  Ouch!  I found I could also buy data for my current phone to unlock some things like email and all that jazz.  My eyes give me fits over using my seven-inch tablet for email, I’m not going to try my phone.  The five dollar price tag on the very low ten megabytes of data would get me into a phone I would like.  I have to wonder who is kidding whom there though.  Perhaps after the first of the year I’ll sink more money into a new phone.  Adding a five dollar fee means spending $60 a year for nothing.  I did confirm the unlimited plan I have is wasting money for me as well.  The $2 a day plan would cost me $62 dollars max a month if I used my phone every day in a thirty-one day month.  If I use my phone twenty-five days a month I would spend $50 a month which is my unlimited full month cost.  I sometimes use my phone once a week and sometimes a few days a week.  I’m wasting my money; perhaps instead of figuring ways to waste more money, I should save.

I have spent a lot of time recording my connection speed from three different testing sites. One site I have used for years and the other two sites for less than a year. I faithfully recorded my results even making a workbook in Microsoft Excel. Across three sites my internet connection speeds went from 22mbps to 16mbps download. Across those same three sites upload speeds were 2mbps to 4mbps. Those are nice speeds and in line with what my provider says I should get.

Actually my internet provider says I should expect speeds up to the lowest download speed, but does not guaranty any speed. I don’t know exactly how that works, but that is what they tell me. I should be happy I have those nice big numbers because they are so impressive. I did get the word on what my actual speed tier is because it was on the description way back when I signed up. Now it is described as up to 15mbps. I have 12/2 speed tier, I’ve had it for years. My core speed has only changed when there has been a problem with my connection. I have a tool that is available to the public called ShaperProbe. Every time I use it; my results show I have the 12/2 connection I’ve always had. I made the name of the tool a link to the tool for those who like to tinker with things.

Here is an example of how my results show I have my same old connection I’ve always had:

DiffProbe beta release. October 2009. Build 1002.

Shaper Detection Module.

Connected to server 80.239.168.215.

Estimating capacity:

Upstream: 4190 Kbps.

Downstream: 20066 Kbps.

The measurement will take up to 2.5 minutes. Please wait.

Checking for traffic shapers:

Upstream: Burst size: 4677-4752 KB;

Shaping rate: 2128 Kbps.

Downstream: Burst size: 9681-10031 KB;

Shaping rate: 12768 Kbps.

For more information, visit: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/~partha/diffprobe

Below is my maximum connection speed.

Estimating capacity:

Upstream: 4190 Kbps.

Downstream: 20066 Kbps

Below is the upload with the shaped rate is my rate

Upstream: Burst size: 4677-4752 KB;

Shaping rate: 2128 Kbps.

Below is my download with the shaped rate is my rate

Downstream: Burst size: 9681-10031 KB;

Shaping rate: 12768 Kbps.

My connection speed is 12mbps/2mbps Tada!

I did go out of my way to record speed tests from three different sites for a long time knowing they only measured maximum speed at that moment.  Maximum speed is good to know, it wasn’t valuable to me because my real speed was not found.  Even ShaperProbe does not allow for a completely relative condition like internet weather.  ShaperProbe will tell you how much of a boost your ISP gives you right off.  There are so many different factors that come into play when connections are made on the internet.  From slow servers to congestion of internet traffic, there are too many factors to count.

The last thing I want to say is that the speed test sites are not lying if you want to see your maximum speed at the moment.  The speed test sites are no good for much else unless there are forums, news, and the like also.

It took me a great while to use any social media, but I relented and went on Facebook.  I quickly added family and a few friends and called it good enough.  I have family members that live in a few different states and Facebook is a natural to keep track of each other a bit.  I made a big decision and jumped into Twitter because I saw so many of the technology writers I follow use Twitter.  I logged into the websites for both Facebook and Twitter and flitted back and forth.  I decided that was very inconvenient at best.  I began my search for a desktop client for my social media.  Little did I know I would stumble upon something great, or a few somethings great.  I did a lot of searching and installed Seesmic and TweetDeck for my desktop computer.

I launched TweetDeck first and fell in love with the interface.  I found I could run multiple accounts and happily added my Facebook account and began arranging columns.  I was inspired to make lists of my Twitter interests and was soon organized the way I wanted to be.  I went to the Seesmic client and set it up to mirror what I had with the other.  Having both desktop clients set up nearly the same helped me determine which I liked best.  I took advantage of each program and customized them to please me as far as coloring goes.  TweetDeck won the customization because I could change the background color of the tweets.  My eyes are not what they used to be and a white background tires them.  With Seesmic Desktop 2 I sadly could not remove the white background of the tweets.  I searched the help on the Seesmic site and it looks like older versions could be changed.  I’ve also noted that at times I have to set up Seesmic again when I open it.

By that I mean; I have to choose which columns I want to view again like my last configuration was not saved.  This fact can be very annoying if you want to open the program and get to work right away.  This very well may be due to clearing Silverlight cookies when my browser of choice is closed.  I will test my theory in a few moments to see if that is the configuration problem I am causing myself.  Yes, I am wiping out the Seesmic configuration when I clear out Silverlight when my browser closes.  This is an inconvenient fact that I cannot hold against Seesmic.  My decision has not been changed, but I cannot hold it against Seesmic.

My official decision is that I much prefer TweetDeck.  I am not an expert at using any programming languages these days, nor am I sponsored by anyone to review software or hardware.  I find TweetDeck slick in appearance and easy to use with more features than I need.  TweetDeck was purchased by Twitter and has mobile versions for folks with tablets and smart phones.  A person can use multiple accounts like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and more if they want.  This makes TweetDeck a hub for a person’s social media which many people desire, myself included.  I don’t want several programs running when I can do everything with one slick interface.

With Facebook getting all strange with the “new” features and Google + opening to the public finally; I have a few requests.  I’m complaining here for the most part.  Facebook doesn’t seem to understand the word simplicity.  This week alone Facebook has changed their user interface a few times leaving things in a jumble.  Just when I got my friend lists straightened out from Facebook’s new way of listing things, they changed the news interface.  There is no changing that back to how they had changed that before.  Facebook always seems to use an obtuse angle of introduction where change is inserted.

Twitter did not confuse me right off, I read a little and I was fine.  Google+ was easy, I watched a video and I began adding people to circles.  Google and Twitter were in use in minutes as opposed to Facebook that took me a few days to understand.  I couldn’t care less about Facebook, but it is a necessary evil for me to have.  It’s had to say if all of my family members will ever switch to Google+, but I’m hoping they will.  Google has a simple approach to how things are done and privacy is better.  Better privacy in that people can communicate with groups of people they choose without the Facebook shuffle taking place.  That is the sort of privacy I’m talking about.  Never say anything on the internet that you don’t want the world to know and you will be fine.  Directing comments about a wild party to just the party goers is better than putting it on your wall and having to explain to mom and dad.

My biggest wish of all is for TweetDeck to incorporate a few more social media accounts.  I would love for Google+ to be added to the list.  I also use FormSpring a little and it would be nice to have it included.  There is something known as getting too big, or bloated to work well also.  I wouldn’t want that to happen to TweetDeck because I like it well.  I did see a Google+ and Twitter Client while searching last night that could be interesting to use.  Twitter is my highest volume message client and I expect Google+ to become the second most active.  These are my opinions and I expect folks have different opinions from me.  I’m becoming more adept with social media, but I’m far from being an expert with it.

I was honestly impressed by the progress Windows has made as an operating system.  We were all told Microsoft was taking a big gamble on the next operating system they were designing way back.  That gamble is Windows 8, or whatever they name it.  The operating system will operate on anything from a desktop PC to a tablet as long as the processor is beefy enough.  My Galaxy Tab would choke and die trying to boot Win 8, but it is not the future tablet.  There were plenty of slick future tablets on display at the key-note along with some impressive desktop PCs too.  The cold, hard facts here is the Windows 8 operating system pleased the developers every step of the way.  I can’t put a number to how many times I saw a developer tweet an epitaph for the iPad.

I don’t believe Microsoft is going to kill off Apple any more than I believe Apple is going to kill off Microsoft.  Market share belongs to analysts and numbers crunchers who battle for the highest percentage.  Of course; Microsoft went for the most bullish outlook by releasing their newest operating system to developers who use their operating system and tools.  So, we end up getting everyone who is already singing the Microsoft song singing a new verse.  I don’t believe I saw a Linux or Apple developer in the audience because it would be pointless.  Microsoft has managed to reinvent the wheel much sooner than the space between Windows XP and Windows 7.

I have to admit the new operating system looks pretty good and functions great.  Windows 8 will work on pretty much anything that will run Windows 7.  Win 8 manages to use fewer resources than Win 7 on the same machine as well.  Microsoft has that covered; they learned from Vista.  An interesting thing about Windows 8 is it is very touch centric when used on touch based devices.  Put Windows 8 on a desktop PC, hook up a mouse and keyboard; you have something that looks very much like Windows 7.  Microsoft found a way to have two user interfaces.  Sort of like the many different Linux user interfaces that can be used.  I’m actually mis-saying that, there have been ways to sort of change the Windows UI in the past.  It’s nothing like the difference between Gnome and KDE, but a little different.

Never the less, the Windows world just got way cooler with the advent of Windows 8.  There is a whole new approach to the way everything works and how things work together.  All of your Windows devices will sync information without going through needless steps.  Even the way tasks are performed is different in the new operating system.  Keep in mind though, the operating system is good enough to run for developers.  There can be thousands of changes before a public beta is offered.  Microsoft did offer the developer edition to the public on MSDN and the Build conference web site.  I have seen tutorials on how to install it from the night the OS was offered up to today, so it is popular.

How do we keep the Windows love going?  There are some sweet new editions of the Microsoft tools that are simplified to work better.  Microsoft did not drop .Net or VB and the like.  The developers get the operating system first for a very good reason.  Microsoft wants lots of applications already fleshed out and ready for the new operating system when it hits the public market.  The individual and enterprise markets will need a good reason to want to upgrade to the newest operating system.  I’ve already seen some whining on a tech site about the Metro UI looking like Windows Phone 7.  The whiner proudly stated he would stick to Windows XP longer still because he would not use a mess like that (Windows 8).  It was very obvious the person had not even gone through the short explanation shown by the writer of the article.  He failed to see the desktop look a person gets when they want.

I am no expert trained in the ways of Windows at college.  I’ve learned by practical experience at work and home.  I made my voyage in the early 70s in High School learning to use a keypunch machine along with all the rest of the needed machinery to get things done.  That means Basic Assembler Language, Cobol, and Fortran; the days of making flow charts was a needed thing.  I went in the Army and when I finally got back home, there were thousands of changes in computing.  It took a while, but I got my hands on an IBM 8088 and ran wild with DOS.  Through the years I picked things up and my how things have changed.

Summing things up; I’ve decided to take a non-monetary flow outlook.  Microsoft is developing a truly better operating system.  I believe this OS is a very needed thing to compete in the world of growing operating systems around us.  It is not only the Apple OS and iOS, but Linux along with Android which is a Linux fork and many other types of competing operating systems on different devices.  The real problem for the big, giant companies is the consumer doesn’t care what makes their device run well.  What consumers care about is how well their devices run and how cool things are.  I don’t want to offend all consumers here, but there are a great many who just want things to work.  Other consumers care about specific things about their devices.  I am going to throw in money too.

Microsoft needs to provide a revenue stream for the future.  It seems Windows 8 is a perfect way to do that.  The operating system works on a bunch of different processors.  Windows is not stuck on just the x86 architecture any more.  That is why Win 8 will work on tablets just as well at desktop computers.  This brings me to some of the swag that the developers got from Microsoft for paying all that money to attend the Build conference.  They got a very nice i5 core custom-built 10 inch tablet with the Windows 8 Developer edition operating system along with new developer tools on it.  They got a very nice portable PC that I’ve been seeing nothing but raving complements about ever since.  How cool is that?  There were other things given away also, but that was the top toy.

I’m including the Build conference web page if you want to techno geek for a while:  BUILD 11 .

I’ve got a color Kindle, Kobo, Nook, mp3 player, camera, social media hub, HD movie viewer, etc.  I paid less than the price of the Nook Color and the rumored price for the Amazon Kindle tablet.  I don’t recall the price for the Kobo reader and I, quite frankly, don’t care.  I’ve got my e-reading covered nicely.  I can keep up very well with my social media through Seesmic or Tweetdeck.  I haven’t made a decision which I will use full-time yet.  The provided music player does a decent job of playing music.  I put about four CDs I like on the expansion card so I could listen to music while I read if I want.  I’m still looking at calendar applications to see which one works for me as well.  I don’t use an online document service like Google, or Microsoft.  The ThinkFree app won’t do me much good, but it is a nice try.  It looks like there is a bunch of things on my Tab I will never use actually.

I’m perfectly OK with the amount of money I paid and the two-year contract I have to get the Galaxy Tab.  I look at it like the HP TouchPad that sold for $99 in the fire sale.  That has WebOS as opposed to the Tab using Android.  I feel the Android is the better operating system for now even though WebOS still has developers working on things.  I bought my Tab for less than the HP product anyway.  I purchased my Galaxy Tab as a Certified Pre-Owned product at $69.99.  After taxes it cost just over seventy-five dollars.  I got a thirty dollar a month data plan along with a two dollar a month extended warranty.

Let’s put this into perspective.  Amazon sells a single use Kindle for $114.00 that has targeted advertising on it.  That Kindle has a six-inch diagonal screen and WI-FI that only connects to Amazon or business partners.  The Kindle 3G has free 3G and WI-FI with the 3G working globally to connect to Amazon for a price of $139.00.  This price includes special offers as Amazon calls it.  There is a $189.00 version without advertising.  This Kindle also has a six-inch diagonal screen to read on.  The Kindle DX is the king of Kindle line for now.  The price is $379.00 and gets you a 9.7 inch diagonal screen plus all the bells and whistles of the 3G model.  Oh yeah, no WI-FI on this model and less battery life.  I find it a little strange that the Amazon Kindle tablet is priced around $250.00 which is less than the Kindle DX.

That is just one example of why I chose the Galaxy Tab.  The Nook editions are less deceptive in my thinking.  No free WI-FI that I saw, unless you are in the store.  They all have WI-FI which is nice if you have a WI-FI capable network.  The Nook is priced at $139.00 and the Nook Color is $249.00.  There are differences here, one does not have color or applications that go along with it.  I’ve said before the Nook Color was my original pick because you could surf the web, listen to music and things that the Amazon readers could not do.  When I saw pricing below the Nook Color for a tablet that could do more, I had to do some comparison thinking.  I ended up with a device that had a larger realm of applications that will prove more useful on a more mainstream operating system.

In short, I think I made a good decision buying the Galaxy Tab for less money.  It’s no secret the Nook color can be turned into an Android tablet, but I haven’t seen it do 3G yet.  My Tab is 3G and WI-FI plus it seems to perform really well.  I’ve yet to use my Tab as an e-reader even though I have all my e-books loaded on it.  I’m perfectly happy to have it hooked to my PC through the USB port.  I have to say the battery doesn’t hold up too well if I keep the radio going on WI-FI or the 3G.  I have several books lined up for when I’m ready for that.  I’m a little busy learning about the device to assign it to one thing or another just yet.  I can slip the tablet in my pocket and go where I want with it and be a happy camper with little trouble.  The pre-owned part of the tablet is something I have no clue of.  There is no blemish that I can see on the outside.  The device is of older make than the brand new tablets on the market today.  That I can live with easily because I don’t require whatever it is the brand new items have.  I’m not going to be out waiting for the bus watching a movie or sitting in the office needing to take notes.

My conclusion so far; a seven-inch tablet is not a productivity device for the working world that I know of.  A highly customized version of Android, much like the Kindle customization could be very useful.  Samsung has already proven a desire to produce many different tablet sizes.  So what is the deal with Amazon?  Why has Amazon chosen to stay in the reader industry when everyone else is shooting for the moon?  I think Amazon is the tortoise in the race and aims to win in the reader race.  Right now we have app developers working for the consumers to make a buck on Android.  We all know the real money is in the enterprise.  Don’t get me wrong; the consumer world has plenty of money to spend as well.  Just look at all the Apple products that the public buys willingly.  I’ve seen the buzz where people are using the Apple iPad in business and other tablets as well.

Enter Microsoft and the upcoming Microsoft Build conference.  The rumors have been running rank full of quad-core tablets and other MS surprises.  Microsoft is heavy in the enterprise computing market and Microsoft had a tablet on the market many years ago.  Let’s hope Microsoft has finally figured out how to things with Windows 8.  There are all sorts of rumors that Build will finally confirm or dismiss.  I know one thing for sure; I like my Android tablet and Microsoft will have a big job catching up in the market.  That is not a new bit of news in the Technology market or anywhere else for that matter.  If anyone is looking for a tablet; check out Samsung.  Just don’t try to buy one in Europe.  Apple is giving Samsung a very hard road with patent issues in Europe for now.  Samsung has actually come out with a few more sizes of tablets.  There is a five-inch and a seven point seven-inch tablet Samsung announced at a European trade event.  It appears there will be a size of tablet for everyone.

I called the service center number and waited a minimum amount of time before I was connected with a nice gal that attempted to help get my Tab up and activated.  We laughed and joked a bit; that is my mechanism for taking pressure off the csr a bit.  I know how it is to have a customer call in and be a complete pain.  Besides, you get better quality help when the csr isn’t in defensive mode.  We went through manual activation twice taking about twenty-five minutes.  My Tab was not in the mood to activate, so the young lady escalated me up one level.  I got another nice young lady and we went over what I saw displayed on the screen.  There was an airplane indicating my Tab was in airplane mode.  That was the offending thing ceasing the activation process.  The process proceeded on its own like it was supposed to as soon as I got the correct method of connecting to the internet.  I teased the gal about her hitting a magic button or something and told her to go tell her boss she needed a raise.

I spent about forty-five minutes total with Verizon support getting my Tab activated.  To me, the time spent is not a big deal.  I had a chance to have guided instruction on some of the inner workings of the tablet I would not have seen otherwise.  I’m sure other folks would have been irritated that their Galaxy Tab didn’t “just work” when they turned it on.  Besides, I’m a geek and retired, so I have time to burn.  I managed to take a few spins around my tablet and decided I have way too many repeated apps.  I have no idea why I should have YouTube, Verizon Navigator, two or three weather apps, and a host of other things on different screens.  I figure one Verizon Navigator, one YouTube,  one weather app, etc should be enough.  So far, the YouTube app just puts me on a page with a bunch of videos and I haven’t discovered how to search for what I want.  That isn’t real useful yet; I think there will be a mass uninstalling when I figure that deal out.

I did manage to install a few things and hook up the Kindle reader.  I have my Kindle library safely tucked in on my Tab along with my Nook library.  I managed to get Tweetdeck installed and running.  I love Tweetdeck on my desktop PC and not so much on my Tab.  I’ll give Seesmic a shot on my Tab because it was fairly good on the desktop as well.  I have managed to tweet from my Tab, so that is full speed ahead.  I am sure I’m going to have fun with this device.  Heck the girls in support were working on me to get a smart phone already.  I told them I don’t want a phone with an I.Q. higher than mine.  That got a laugh, but I don’t think big red will stop trying to sell me.

The nomenclature of the Galaxy Tab is the well-known seven-inch size.  I happen to like the black on black design of the Tab.  The screen is nice and bright on the auto setting; I’m sure I will tinker with that on manual when I get used to things a bit more.  The auto-brightness control does work although I’ve not had the Tab outside yet.  That is a task set for later today.  The Tab is a bit heavier than a medium thickness paperback book, but easy enough to hold.  I tested the book readers and both worked well with crisp page turns in either direction.  E-reading was one of the reasons this tablet was purchased.  I’m happy with the reading parts I’ve tested so far.  When holding the Tab upright the lighted icons at the bottom are very easy to use.  When the Tab is turned on its side, everything switches quickly.  You need to be careful to keep your thumb away from the lighted icons obviously.  The buttons on the screen are very responsive.  I’ve mastered the flip or flick to change screens.  I also got the pinch down on web pages for zoom in and out.

I’ve managed the keyboard for “peck” typing, you have to be quick for that.  The swype I will take on when I feel brave, or feel like doing a test document in the document hub thing.  You can see I have just been hitting icons and experimenting to see what happens.  Later today I’ll be hitting up the tutorials on the Verizon site to learn how I’m actually supposed to be doing things.  The “RTM” thing is usually my very last option when it comes to figuring things out.  One thing is for sure; there is a lot of crap coming off the tablet.  The video I’ve watched on my Tab has been very good-looking.  The sound for it has been mediocre,  the Tab has two very tiny speakers.  The audiophile in me tells me there is no way to get any real quality audio out of something so small.  I’m amazed sound comes out at all.  I would be really surprised if 250 milli-watt max actually finds its way out of the speaker.  I’m not going to complain about the sound.  If I must hear loud and excellent sound, the Tab will be hooked up to something much bigger and better at reproducing sound.

I have to say I’m surprised I have to use the 3G on the Tab at times for updates.  I purchased the two gigabyte data plan and I really doubt I’ll use that much.  I rarely travel and have a use for a portable device that need internet connection.  I did find good enough speed on the 3G for browsing and download of my e-reader libraries.  I have a NetGear RangeMax Wireless-N Gigabit Router WNR3500L.  I set the connection speed to nominal 145mbps in the router using WPA2-PSK [AES] security and put the Tab on the access list.  My Tab hooked right up after using the pass phrase.  My Tab also listed all my neighbors and thankfully they run secured as well.  My daughter brought her laptop over a week ago and we couldn’t get her connected no matter what we did with the router and laptop.  I’m happy to say the Tab reports its connection speed is 65mbps.  I really doubt I can take advantage of that, but it looks nice.  The Tab will spend the bulk of its time on my network when connected.

So, this is my neophyte view on a Galaxy Tab after ownership of about 22 hours which I have spent time mostly dabbling with it.  At this time, I’m very happy with my purchase.  There is much more time to spend with my Tab and I will use it for one of its prime purposes today.  I have to go to the VA to see a doctor.  That means hurry up and wait.  Enter the Galaxy Tab to make waiting more pleasant.  Maybe if America finally does get a health care system that our President envisioned, more tablets will be sold for the same reason.  You can take your magazine with you and not feel like a jerk for depriving someone else!

My first impression of the Amazon Kindle, the tablet name, was it mimics the Nook Color in a lot of ways.  I’ve taken several days to mull over what Tech Crunch had to say before I put electrons on electrons espousing my opinion.  I have stated elsewhere here that I was interested in the Nook Color E-reader because it could do the simple things I actually would want or need.  Then I reached a price point of $249.00 which has stayed static.  I still thought that was a decent price for something that I could actually turn into a full-blown Android tablet.  I did some shopping around and found the Galaxy Tab seven-inch going for $199.00 and did an about-face on price point.  That price is a subsidized price from Big Red (Verizon), but it is an Android tablet.  Oddly, the tablet comes with the kindle reader on it.  I use more than one reader, so I hope to get more than that one app on the tablet.

Back to the Amazon Kindle; it has a color display with a seven-inch capacitive touch screen.  It is reported to look like the Blackberry Playbook tablet and use two-finger multi-touch sensing.  The Amazon Kindle is back-lit with no e-ink display.  The price point is $250.00 which is directly in line with the Nook Color.  There is more to it than that though.  The Amazon Kindle is thought to be hitting the market in late November of this year.  The memory size that was reviewed was a disappointing six gigabytes with no indication of micro or regular size expansion card slot.  That is plain irritating in my mind, but the review tablet was not one for the market.  Things change when it is time to actually sell a product and I expect internal memory will be a changing thing.

One thing Amazon Kindle tablet has on the Nook Color is the massive Amazon marketing machine behind it.  All things Amazon from the cloud to music and video.  There is a very hefty market that will be built right in for the tablet that most other tablets don’t come with.  Marketing is another thing to consider as well.  When HP decided to sell off their fated tablet they went to a heavy discount.  I can see Amazon knocking a bit off the price of the Amazon Kindle tablet and watch the sales soar.  Another thing Tech Crunch mentions left me with the walled garden feeling like Apple gives me.  Amazon did not include anything Google in their tablet.  The operating system of the tablet is said to be pre-Froyo (android 2.2) and heavily customized by Amazon.

Google released Android to open source so it could be used and customized to whatever effect.  Tech Crunch tells us not to expect Gingerbread, Honeycomb, or Ice Cream Sandwich versions of Android.  I’ll leave private versioning up to Amazon and Apple to keep their closed worlds spinning in bliss just the way they want it.

Again read the Tech Crunch article here.

The ordering experience for me was pretty painless.  It’s not hard to fill out a web form and I was stepped through the process of selecting things.  First the tablet, then the data plan; I chose the 2 gig plan for $30.00.  I had to choose some kind of messaging plan, so I chose pay as you go.  I don’t intend to be sending any text messages.  The next screen was about selecting insurance plans; I took extended warranty for two dollars a month.  The next screen had accessories on it; I didn’t order any because they are all priced very high.  I proceeded to check out, entered all my information, was given a chance to verify it, which I did.  I agreed to the terms set out and found out the final billing amount.  Since I ordered on Friday, the activation fee was dropped and free overnight shipping was already given.  It seems strange that overnight shipping is actually two business days, but that is how it was worded.  I don’t believe Saturday is considered a business day and I doubt Labor Day (first Monday in September) is a business day.  I believe I will get my Tab on Wednesday or Thursday or whenever.  One more thing; Verizon stated they need to check my credit and shipping depends on stock.  I used a debit card, but I doubt that actually registered on the web site.  I received an email saying my order is pending waiting for credit approval.  I guess I will get my tablet sometime next week.  I’m not really expecting the two-day overnight shipping, the details about the shipping pretty much put that out the window.  I will be writing a review once I get settled with the tablet.  Then I will know if I made a mistake or if I got what I expected from a tablet.

UPDATE:  I received an email from Verizon stating they needed a deposit of $125.00 to activate my order.  I was told I would get the money back in a year if all goes well.  The next question I asked didn’t sit very well.  I wanted the interest money Verizon will accrue as well.  That question is not part of the customer service script the folks are given.  They also cannot answer why a person has to pay a deposit; they only know a deposit must be paid.  We all know big red gets as much money as it can just like the rest of the carriers.  I was told to expect my now $125.00 more expensive tablet on Tuesday.  We shall see how things go from there.

Pursuing the CompTia certificates is probably the least costly and most general of the desired of the starting points.  Getting the A and A+ of the CompTia is good, but you can push those to go into networking, security, and the like.  All of the CompTia certificates are called neutral as far as job specifics because there is no real degree of specialization toward a single technology giant.  You can land a nice help desk and computer shop job with the CompTia because you gain a good knowledge in all things computer.  If you set your gaze upon Microsoft, prepare to be overwhelmed.

After a lot of link clicking and a few curses, actually more than a few, I convinced Microsoft to tell me what I need to get ahead.  Microsoft tends to ignore CompTia certification as a qualification, but says any certification is better than none.  I will have to test for the MCTS to show I can deploy and configure Windows 7 desktop in the Enterprise.  Then I can go ahead and get the certification of MCITP to be a support person and/or administrate the Windows 7 desktop in an Enterprise.  It boils down to spending $70.00 for the MCTS training materials to start with.  I can do the same for the MCITP certification.  I can buy study materials for a total of $140.00 for both subjects that would fill in only a few blanks in what I already know.  What is not told is the cost of taking the exams which is much more than the course materials.

The bottom line for me is simple: I don’t need any certifications.  I’m already retired and I certainly don’t want to ruin that by getting a job!  I’ve already got some nice thick books on MS-DOS, PHP-MYSQL, Window Server 2003, and the like that need to be updated.  Let’s not forget the ARRL handbook I got after I earned my ham license back in the 80s.  I’m a bit like the BORG, I assimilate information for the good of all.  I am tempted to get the study material just because though.  I probably won’t because Microsoft likes to change things around a lot.  That may be why I have frequent headaches.  By-the-way; the CompTia certs are much more respectable than Microsoft lets on.  After all, you must have a well-rounded knowledge of Microsoft technology to pass the examinations.  Microsoft has been known to fail on a number of other fronts as well.  I feel the CompTia A+ is a very good cert. to have.  The certification isn’t about learning one specific technology, even though MS is a part of it.  If I remember right, even Unix or Linux command line is thrown in for fun.  It has been literally decades since I’ve messed with that stuff.  I do know I would rather do the new CompTIA  versus the Microsoft training.

I also looked at pricing of things today; I was not happy.  I looked at Micro Center and Best Buy online.  I started with tablets finding prices from a few hundred dollars to eight hundred dollars.  Apple was always the most expensive in their class.  That is a fact we all know and many don’t mind that fact.  These are prices buying the items outright and not from a wireless carrier.  The bulk of the prices were from $399.99 to $599.99 for the decent name brand tablets.  A person can spend over eight hundred for a high-end tablet if they want.  That is a lot of money for a computing device with limited uses.  I looked at net/note books next.

I found many that started anywhere from two hundred dollars and up around eight hundred dollars.  To refresh memory here; a net/note-book is a size under a laptop computer.  It runs a limited operating system of Windows or Linux.  There are other operating systems that can be used as well.  The net/note books use the smaller, made for mobile use processors that use less energy and are less powerful.  These things generally look like a small laptop computer with a screen that is anywhere from ten inches to fourteen inches and is much lighter than a laptop.  This sort of computing device can be used much like a laptop computer.  This item is more valuable than a tablet in my book and in many cases, cheaper than a tablet.

When I looked at laptop computers I found many of them in the same price ranges of the tablets.  I compared at Motorola Xoom tablet at the Motorola store price of $499.99 to laptop computer prices.  I picked the wi-fi only device which is bare bones and comparable to a lower end laptop.  Even a low-end laptop computer will do much more computing than a tablet at the same price.  A person has much more computing power with a laptop, but there is the added bulk and much less cool factor.  You can also surpass the price ceiling of the tablet and go over one thousand dollars for a really nice laptop computer.  I’ve never owned a laptop because I’ve never needed a laptop, but I know many who have them.  I have had many desktop computers and that comes next.

You can find a bargain or bare bones type of computer in the three hundred dollar price area.  Don’t expect much out of it though.  I build my own computers and I can get away with spending a few hundred dollars on my next computer.  That is possible because I have an extra case with all the extra things I need just waiting for a mother board to be installed.  You can get a Galaxy Tab 7 inch for $199.99 with two-year contract at Verizon.  You can’t get a desktop computer for that price unless you buy a used model.  A person can get a decent desktop computer in the five to six hundred dollar area if you aren’t doing anything special with it.  That is still in the area of pricing where tablets live.  You can’t haul a desktop computer around with you all the time.  You have to bring a monitor, keyboard, and mouse with you if you want to use it. Now, how about those smart phones?

At good old Verizon, a first look tells me a smart phone goes from free to $299.99.  No tablets start at free and their prices climb higher.  A desktop computer can be had at essentially three hundred dollars along with a net book and laptop.  We can buy a smart phone, tablet, net book, laptop, and desktop computer for around three hundred dollars.  A person can expect decent quality with the smart phone, tablet, and maybe the net book.  This is what topped off my day with aggravation.

There are many things at nearly the same cost with widely different functionality.  Smart phones have become the Swiss Army knife of the 21st Century data tools.  Let’s go to the beginning of time when there was the lowly PC.  That was last century sometime in the 80s.  The letters: PC mean Personal Computer as in the one that the super rich had at home.  If we rocket forward to this century again and PC means a great deal of different things.  You can put a personal computing device in your pocket or work on one at your computer desk.  All points between there are different sizes and types of personal computers.  I blame it all on Apple and their iPhone!  They started a craze that could not be stopped.

Since the hip and trendy things could not be stopped; all industry had to compete.  Now we have a dizzying array computing stuff and there is no end to it in sight.  Sometimes I wish for a globally placed electromagnetic pulse blast knocking out all the toys we have today.  As much fun as it seems, I’m not sure I want to go back the 50s or 40s.  I don’t think many would survive life in a world where the phase locked loop technology is king of the road.  The military and some smart people would survive an EMP event because they have equipment protected.  The every day Joe would be out of luck.  Getting back to money and computing devices.  It seems a bit odd that the same money can buy several different types of computing devices.  Then again, devices are not priced according to what they do.  Devices are priced according to what demand for them is.  If you buy a tablet outright you can pay over five hundred dollars for it.  That five hundred dollar tablet does damn little for the money you spend on it.  A smart phone does a bit more in that a phone makes phone calls.  Some of the tablets do have the ability to make phone calls.  You can watch movies, play games, do Facebook, do Twitter, check and write email, edit and make documents, etc with a tablet.  You can do that with a smart phone too, but on a very much smaller screen.  I left out read e-books and I probably left out a lot of other things.

A tablet has a keyboard that is virtual, that means it is on the screen.  Most can be connected to a real keyboard which helps a lot if you want to do real typing.  Some smart phones can be docked to a monitor, keyboard, speakers, and be used as a net book.  Technology is not settled enough yet to define which device is going to do what best.  As for me; I’m buying a tablet tomorrow that is within my range of reason.  I have no office to take it to and no group of friends to impress.  I’ll read books while I’m comfortable and fritter away time while I wait in the unending doctor appointments.

I have to assume that I should order my product on the weekend to avoid the $35.00 activation fee or at least get a $35.00 credit in a few months if I do have to pay it.  On the page where you fill out all the credit card information I am again reminded of Free Activation Friday-Monday with a note below saying a credit will be applied on the first or second bill.

What Verizon will show you is the cost you are paying with a two-year contract.  If you choose the regular Galaxy Tab you are charged $199.99 or for certified pre-owned is $129.99.  I chose a 2 gigabyte plan at $30.00 per month along with an extended warranty for $1.99 per month.  I am able to see I owe 31.99 per month and the activation fee may or may not be charged.  I could continue to check out, but I’m not going to do that until I am ready to actually buy the thing.  I’ve seen where you fill out all the credit card info to find out what you will be paying and that is when the transaction happens.  I’m sure there are fees and taxes that stack the deck even higher.

I believe I will actually have to press a button to charge the tablet, but I don’t want Verizon or any company having my credit card info even remotely available until I surrender it.  I noticed Verizon will not allow you to not select a messaging billing method.  I don’t even understand messaging, so I chose the pay as I go.  I imagine that leaves me open to a few messages from Verizon they will undoubtedly charge me for.  This whole plugging into the beast thing is becoming less and less interesting as time goes by.

I could wait to see what Amazon releases this fall sometime.  They are supposed to have a tablet product that will compete with iPad at greatly reduced price.  That equals an insane price to a mostly too expensive price in my way of thinking.  If one studies the pricing system of everything from netbook down, you will see some smart phones cost more than netbooks.  That is why I’ve railed against the industry to start with.  Defined pricing and technology per device has not been scaled.  I’ve seen more than one opinion that requires a tablet to replace the laptop.  We have some smart phones that have been sold on that same foundation.  Just put them in their dock and you have a full size keyboard as well as other features.  When you are done, just disconnect your smart phone and you have a small device again.

Again I’m going to say; the industry has no idea which form factor is going to fit which ideal.  All these manufacturers seem to be saying “me too” so they can get a piece of the pie.  Do we really need that sort of computing device?  The only reason I’ve considered a tablet is because I can get one cheaper than a Nook color and it will do more.  The seven-inch form factor appeals to me for ease of handling and weight.  There is no way I will use two gigabytes of 3G data a month.  I simply will not buy anything that has 4G on it because that is a farce and very sparsely spread around the country.  I have a Netgear N3500L router that will handle high-speed wireless all day and night if I want.  I don’t have a use for 3G until Verizon makes me use it.  A tablet for me is close to being a toy.  The every day business world may want to use it for work.  I hope they can find a use for the tablet form factor because it is appealing.  Being able to use a tablet while riding along in a car to watch a movie still falls under the cool factor or toy.  A person would be nuts to try to play a MMORPG or any of the online warfare games on a tablet.  The hardware just isn’t there yet.  Using a tablet for a Skype video call may be pushing the average tablet to its limit.  That is why industry still needs to innovate and find categories for the various devices for money-making they have brought out.