Sony Xperia Z (Part 2)

After several recharging cycles, battery performance appears to have improved a bit, though still not at a satisfactory level. If, say, 10 per cent could last an entire that would be great; at the moment, is around 20 per cent, which is a huge consumption consider I haven't used the phone much than to chat on Line and checking out Instagram/Twitter/Google+ ... I don't even use it to play music, movie or games. So will see if battery life will further improve the coming week (esp I already have the power saving mode on)...

Elsewhere, have had a really enjoyable Hot Yoga class yesterday ... there were a number of hip opening poses -- side angle and half moon -- that were simple but totally effective. I'm looking forward to the Hatha 2 class later this afternoon. I told my instructor that I don't mind doing more hip opening poses today ... it is, apparently, a good way to unleash those locked/pent-up emotions within (!!!)

Game-wise, I'm switching between Persona 4: the Golden (playthrough no. 3) and Final Fantasy Type 0 (playthrough no. 2) because both have very good gameplay mechanics. Type 0 in particular because of all the different cool attack moves! Love playing those. But am also looking to play something new. But Final Fantasy X HD is not expected to be released until later on this year ... what a bummer!

Sony Xperia Z

After having rediscovered Samsung Nexus S recently (see earlier entry), I've been using the smartphone so much (with Line, Instagram, Twitter, Google+ and other apps on all the time) that it started to play up/hang. Its battery life is also pretty miserable. So it looked like my usage had quickly surpassed the phone's capability/limit and it was time to upgrade (yeah!) I did think about waiting for the release of Samsung S4 and the Blackberry Q10 but I was also interested in exploring new brands. A friend recently visited Tokyo and said the new Sony Xperia Z is all the rage over there. Having checked the model out on the Net (it comes in Black, White and ... Purple, think Cadbury's, Yummy!) I decided to go for it.

I haven't regretted my purchase ~ so far. Here is my quick review:

* form factor: it is quite rectangular and weighs on/feels very solid in the hand, which I like; and it's Purple!
* It comes with a purple cover ...
* screen colour: it IS Sony so it's absolutely brilliant (quite literary), vibrant and sharp;
* music: supposed to be really good but haven't really tested that out, same goes with camera;
* applications: it syncs with my Nexus S via my Google account ... just how cool is that?! Great multitasking;
* battery life: still testing this. It has a "stamina mode" which boosts power save but am not totally convinced;
* hardware: battery is built in and has more that what I need for internal memory; allows memory card,
* call quality: come on, I'm NOT using this as a phone -- maybe for emergency only;
* text input: its handwritten recognition is great and has voice input, but I still prefer the Blackberry keyboard

So, other than battery life, which I still need to test out with more charge cycles, so far so good!!!

Social Media/Networking Platforms

Have been "addicted" to several social media apps lately: Instagram, Twitter, Weibo, Line, Whatsapp, BBM, Google+ and this Blog ... never before have I exposed my life to the outer world to this extent: they know who I follow on my Twitter (James Franco and Chris Evans ~ but why?!), what I eat (horrid canteen food), where I hang out (Mandarin Landmark, karaoke lounges! Uh-er!), with whom (super cool artist Yi Zhou but mostly just myself), as well as what I do in my spare time (yoga and geek-fest-ing) ... and this is without me having a FB account! 

These platforms are devised/used mainly for sharing (with others, friends and strangers alike) ~ though, for me, they are more a visual diary for personal reference. I don't have zillions of followers, neither do I follow that many people. But I do love it when I see I'm being followed by fellow yogis or yoga websites cos it is great to be sharing my practice experiences with others ... and much of yoga teaching and learning is about sharing; from practical tips on achieving certain challenging asanas to philosophical thinking and thoughts. 

But because I'm now spending more time checking these various apps I've been thinking about upgrading my  phone (Nexus S), which is not being used to such regular use. Data volume consumed increased as battery life drops ... but should I wait for the Samsung S4 to come out or get Sony's Xperia Z? Or shall I just use Nexus S until it dies (and when is Blackberry Q10 coming out?)  

From Ubergizmo:

The Blackberry Q10 has yet to be released, but it seems that Blackberry has no plans to slow things down. According to Blackberry’s CEO, Thorsten Heins, during the company’s Q4 FY2013 earnings call, he revealed that the Blackberry Q10 is currently being tested by 40 carriers in 20 countries, suggesting that when the device is released, we can expect Blackberry to cover as much ground as possible. No word on when the Q10 will see a release, but the end of April seems to be the general consensus. We expect that more traditional Blackberry customers might be more interested in the Q10 over the Z10, especially given the familiar QWERTY physical keyboard layout that seems to be a hark back to the good old days of devices like the Bold 9900 and so on. The Q10 will be running on Blackberry 10, and just like the Z10, it will support Android app ports as well, meaning that would-be customers will not have to worry about the shortage of apps.

Wow, Blackberry sharing Android apps??? Maybe the Q10 will be the ultimate answer to my single phone but multi-platform dream.

A Speedy Recovery

Am touching wood as I type this entry ... last Friday I went to my dermatologist thinking I had got some weird skin infection only to be told I had shingles. Shingles! Yucks! It wasn't itchy but there was, like, a line  of "pimples" running up/down the back of my neck, with a couple of bumps on the base of the scalp (in the back above the neck). The dermatologist wasn't sure it was shingles (cos the rash in back of the neck was mid-line) until he saw another red spot further down my neck/right shoulder ... he said shingles only appears on one side of the body.

Anyway, cutting a long story short, I was put on anti-viral medication for a week and was told not to come into contact with pregnant women or babies. Decided not to risk going into the yoga studio (there are quite a few pregnant mothers around) so have been off the mat for a week. The good news is I was told yesterday this (mild) bout of shingles is now cleared by my dermatologist. So back on the mat today/tomorrow. My body needs some serious exercising!!!

And to be honest, had I not been practising yoga, one wonders if the shingles attack would have been a lot more severe. 

Persona 4: the Golden (3rd Playthru)

After several months of Final Fantasy Type-0, I've decided to stop playing this bleak game. It'll take hours of grinding to get to the Agito Tower anyway so I think I go back to P4G one last time (it's such a happy and colourful RPG in comparison). I've set difficulty level to the highest (Risky -- though it's still relatively easy) and trying to complete some back stories that I didn't finish in my last playthrough. So, the additional "social links" to be completed in this round will be: Hermit, Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, Moon and Hunger ... which is still quite a lot! Will also try to complete as many quests as possible. 

A Rediscovery: Nexus S

This Google Phone is the immediate follow-up to Nexus One, which I bought when it first came out awhile ago but sold after about 10 months because, well, it's a htc and I don't like its form factor, which was a little lackluster and underwhelming (I only liked its colour and the fact it could only be ordered through Google). I waited for a bit before getting the Nexus S cos it was a bit pricey when it first came out (it's a Samsung after all). Then I got it and played around with it ... I like the fact ALL Google applications are there on one phone and it's basically a mobile media centre on the move. 

The problem is the battery is so shite that it became a media centre on the move for, like, an hour. Which is pretty pathetic. No wonder the phone came with one of those power adapters. Also, its screen/ colour is kinda dark and dull, especially when compared with other Samsung phones such as the S3 and Note (since the new LG Nexus 4 phone also has this dull screen I surmise it's a Google Nexus shortcoming). So, despite the fact I've had this phone for several years now, but mostly it's been sitting inside a cupboard. 

But recently I dug it up because there is this addictive game called Sugar Crush that I can play on it. Needless to say when I play this game the battery drains even faster ... BUT I was fiddling with the phone this morning and realised just how powerful it is/could be because I run so many social media applications on it (maybe that's why battery drains so quickly!) With Nexus S I can: Instagram + Twitter, Weibo, Blog, Gmail, Google+, YouTube, Google Talk, msn ... and receive all sorts of feeds. It's honestly quite amazing. Oh yes, almost forgot, you can make calls/Skype on it too but, ironically, I seldom use it as a phone because of its size. For calls, I use my Blackberry or Nokias or JPhone.

Anyway, another reason why I dug up Nexus S was that I was/am thinking of getting the Samsung Note2, which basically is a bigger version of the Nexus phone + it's on 4G. I definitely wouldn't make calls with that cos it'd be like talking into a diary... but I dunno, since I have the Nexus S now, which is totally functional, not sure if I should trade that in for a Note2 ... also it's SO trouble to set up a new piece of gadget because I don't think I can just transfer apps over ... all the re-installing will be SO tedious.

Guess, I will just keep using Nexus S, but with a mobile charger in tow...

Possibly Another Playthrough

Have now unlocked the Airship in Final Fantasy Type-0 so can roam around Orience (below) freely and quickly (riding on those Chocobos was fun at first but they are kinda slow in comparison and I got bored breeding them at the farm).

I think I now have access to almost everywhere on the map, bar maybe the Concordia headquarters, which needs to be unlocked in the final optional mission. In the meantime, it's fun to check out areas previously unavailable and do a bit of level grinding here or there. 

Right now, Machina is @ lvl 60, Rem and Ace @ 52; then Deuce, Trey and King are all @ only 45, the rest still in their 20s. So will have to leave Agito Tower (final dungeon) for awhile (or just leave it) cos I'd probably need at last three lvl 99s to even start contemplating tackling it. In the meantime, I guess I can return to Besnel cave to upgrade weapons ... I just hope it's easier now to tackle those Behemoths and King Behemoths, which are such pain in the bottom to kill. Actually, I think I will just grind here for awhile.

Ah, this entry is supposed to be about another playthru ... NOT in Type-0 but Persona 4: the Golden. Dunno, suddenly want to play a JRPG and was thinking re-doing P4G for the third time. After all, it is one of the most-fun games I've played in recent months. But then when I realise I will have to start from zero (even with lvl 99 Personas) and re-do all the side quests and those "social links", I'm, like, maybe I will wait for awhile. Strangely enough, I was trying to get back into Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together but found it really boring now. Guess I'm completely over that game. And have deleted The 3rd Birthday to free up some MBs on the PSVita for new games (though nothing interesting out there at the moment). Type-0 is actually v similar to 3rd Birthday in terms of the game mechanics only it's so much more fun. Anyway, back to the grind!