Posts by Bad Beaver

IDGAF

Seriously, and if they ran him on the tears of baby seals. It's Steve Jobs.

Problems with self-importance?

Who cares?

so long ago already

still so romantic...

"an act of God"

Come on! The correct expression is "THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT!". You got caught, at least admit your involvement. Wimpish brats.

undecided...

Ok, the bad list is blatantly obvious

- no networking

- no HDMI

- coaxial digital out?! Is this some abandoned Philips project they picked up for cheap?

- The menues are as shoddy as on any other random HDD-media thingy from China

What I want to know is: At 90 quid, the drive is included?

@ unitron

I agree. I almost skipped the whole thing a few seconds in because it was so annoying.

Thanks

This is the kind of aware and awake reporting I visit this site for.

Stop it

The camera reviews on El Reg are all... they don't really cut the mustard.

By the way, the "HIGH-END" compact Ricoh is the GX200. A very interesting camera, yet sadly in urgent need of a better sensor with less noise issues. I say urgent as the GX200 has much better ergonomics & handling than what Canon (G10 heavy brick) & Panasonic (LX3 fiddly toy) offer at the high end. Once Ricoh updates that model they will likely be the best option for folks who actually want some nifty features in a compact that feels "right". If you're "only" after total image quality you're getting a Sigma DP anyway.

I see where this is going

"Make sure you get the most out of your dongle when abroad"

That's what a holiday is all about in the first place!

Acids found to be corrosive!

In other headlines: Pope catholic, water wet!

We need a NO SHIT, SHERLOCK! button.

See, Palm?

This is what I'll get should the Pre be "exclusive"/tethered in Europe. I'm perfectly happy with the superbly (and sturdily) made E51 in the hands down usability department, yet the slide-out keyboard would be a nice touch.

Poor folks

sucks :(

be sure

to check out the linked article for the picture of granny with her UZI, complete with shades and flash-induced Terminator-glow. Picture of the day!

Nice

Very nice for a leccy. Let's see what happens to the price over here in Euroland.

Oh and Tesla — BUTTONS please, touchscreens have little place in a car.

@ Harry Stottle

While I in no way condone indecent exposure, I wholeheartedly agree. It is not that this guy was making kids watch or anything. If one for whatever absurd reason (or as in the US — by default) thinks one has to call the cops, they should send him home to continue his business in private and maybe have some social service drop by to enlighten the poor sod about the Do's and Don'ts of public behaviour. No wonder US prisons need to stack their inmates five foot high.

Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit

...or "toss it". While von der Leyen (or Angry Ursel, as I like to say) saw plenty of opposition when she first came up with her questionable ideas due to very valid concerns over implications on future decisions and disaccord with our Grundgesetz, media is now applauding the ability of cross-party agreement "all for the children". I literally saw the line "everything must be done" written this morning. This country is going nuts. It has been on the brink for quite a while, but election year seems to bring out the worst in everyone. To elaborate, von der Leyen's response to critique was to stamp her foot and exclaim "it makes me so irate!". For all her previous merits, her current ways are just intolerable. Nuts!

I also just LOVE the apparent constitutional incompetence on side of the police, with its Stasi-Style nonchalance. Dresden and Jena eh? Maybe they just liked to live up the warm fuzz of times long passed.

@ jake

Of course you're right. Regardless, is it okay if I am not fine with Google providing information to J. Random Criminal from three hoods away so I have to mind him too and not just J. Random Criminal from the block who already knows his hunting grounds, in fact mind everyone smart enough to find the pictures of street X online? Is is okay if the notion that I am not fine with companies taking pictures of me or my property without asking arose independently, without media assistance?

Let me propose an experiment. Go to the nicest residential area in your home town and take your camera with you (the bigger the better). Stand in front of peoples property and take snaps from all angles. Do this for every house in a street. Whenever someone approaches you about what you are doing, explain that you just want to put those pictures online so all the world can search for said street and take a virtual stroll through it. Explain that you will connect it to aerial satellite images so people can see what is behind houses and not visible from the street too. Make sure to go on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon when folks have their cars or bikes out and their kids playing on the lawn. Note down how long it takes for people to call the police or their private security service (depending upon where you go), then come back here and report your findings.

Sick of it

The new trend to lock phones to carriers in Europe needs to end, it hurts consumers and sales too. I have *zero* problem to commit for two years if the carrier offers both a good monthly rate and a decent subsidy of the device. On the contrary, I have a lot of problems not being able to choose the carrier in the first place if I am after a specific device (especially if the exclusive carrier demands absurd rates, see T-Mobile in Germany), even more problems if the device is locked so even after the two years it likely involves hassle or feature-loss to switch carriers, and maximum problems if I cannot simply buy it full price and use it to my liking. Carriers & phonemakers can apply this strings-attached-permashaft to Americans as much as they like (as it seems) but over here it simply means that I take my money elsewhere.

So thumbs up for unlocked iPhones. Now give me subsidized iPhones (and Pres and whatnot) from every carrier who wants to sell them.

Sick of this

As a German, I strongly demand for a banning of populist politicians with reactionary mindsets trying to exploit drama in an election year. I also demand the banning of short-sighted argumentation contra "killer games". The most unfortunate events around isolated kids losing it do not create the need to render a very valid (if sometimes tasteless) and popular form of entertainment VERBOTEN. The less kids are able to project their aggression into harmless games and sports, the more they will take it to the streets, taking on each other and the general population.

It makes me really, really angry. Forbidders need to be forbidden.

HALT!

It's totally VERBOTEN not to have that 2-headed link. Oh and I do feel sorry for my local plods, equipped with radios so old that even kiddie toys can listen in.

Voted

for this as "most pointless article of 09"

And it's only March!

For a tenner?!

I'm amazed. In Germany, you get 200MB HSDPA for €25. If you want flat data, you're looking at €45 minimum and you'll still pay through the nose for most calls & texts unless for some reason all your contacts like to get shafted by T-Mobile too.

@ Ted: 100% ACK. One can take very decent snaps with the iPhone.

look at those ports

Electrical digital audio out... get over it, Philips...

Sad

Ballmer has no shame, really.

RE: Laser disks?

Yes, Rik, people still use Laserdiscs. I do. Quite often. In fact I though "this BD would look nice to the old Pioneer CLD" — although the good old spinner is not as lacquer-laden.

Or did you mean the disc format per se?

compared to that other maker's stuff...

Quite a few drawbacks on this unit... but I totally welcome that Philips has the decency not to assume I'd want to buy a new set of phones just so I can use it. Thank you, Philips. Good thinking. Now give it proper gapless and AAC support.

hmmm CalDAV

Now how nice would that be? Useful calendars, that's unheard of...

I have to say this update eliminates a whole bunch of serious shortcomings. Won't help though if I am still supposed to have T-Mobile sink their rusted harpoon in my rectum to extract whatever money possible. German tariffs are a sick joke. You hear that, Palm?

Reminds me

The whole description reminds me of the opening scene of the Dawn of the Dead remake, with the chase, doorbashing, jumping on cars and all. I demand a reenactment.

In other news, the weblink posted by Boz contains a clip from Family Guy that Hulu won't let me check out because I'm not 'merican. FUCK YOU, HULU!

Corporate dimwittism

"Hey guys, now we have a globally established brand whose strength of awareness is a century in the making, what shall we do?"

"CHANGE THE LOGO TO SOMETHING RANDOM THAT NOBODY RECOGNIZES!"

"Awesome idea! Now pass me the pipe!"

@ Gilbert Wham

Word!

4real?

Is this really a 4-page "story" about how to create a bootable clone?

RE: The Simpsons

Neil, as you sure know *everything* has been done on the Simpsons already. Everything.

Thing is, I would rather wait for the next volcano to take care of the thing rather than to invest gazillions into some far-fetched Sci-Fi wet dream. But if Mr Boffin got his publicity now I guess it's all cream and nipples.

Re: Seanie Ryan

Seanie, there is a miniscule difference between supplying headphones with control elements and doing so while voiding the player itself of all controls. So think before you speak or shut the fuck up yourself. I am sick of self-righteous morons who think they can tell why anyone would by something or not while obviously giving the matter itself not the slightest thought. Just because the Shuffle is a basic player it doesn't mean you want to use it with crappy phones.

If they make it an exclusive deal

then Palm can go fuck themselves. I do not buy locked phones.

In Russia...

... pancakes eat YOU.

Lubrication!

Brilliant, they should tell the public transport guys here in Hamburg about that concept. The screeching is a major pain at times, and in the underground stations it is painful. Go lubricate that!

Who cares?

I did not get an iPhone. You know why? Because I live in Germany and T-Mobile's iPhone plans are a substantial rip-off. That, combined with the many shortcomings of the phone, makes it a no-go (and while I am too old to still be a fanboy I am a longtime Mac user, I *wanted* to like it). Now the Pre fixes A LOT of the shortcomings of the iPhone. A lot. But if it is tied to absurd plans that curtail my choice, I will not get it.

If Palm manages to avoid this snare, I might even be willing to look over the fact that the Pre is encased in glossy plastic. Yet in the same way as I am too much of a rational person to opt for a funky THENUSHIT! device that doesn't do a lot of what I actually need, I am not willing to pay many times the price of the device over the four years I usually get out of a phone.

Palm needs to realize that they will neither outsell Apple on features (most folks don't care. Look at them, they bought iPhones) nor on Cool (they don't have any outside of geek-circles). They need to combine a compelling device with the ability to get it at a good price — without strings attached.