Instructions

Take note of your Globe Tattoo SIM number located on the upper right hand side of the SIM card. Write it down on a piece of paper or save it in your Phonebook. You will need this when you reload your Globe Tattoo.

1. If you are reloading via Autoload Max, give your Globe Tattoo SIM number to the retailer. The retailer will load it like a regular prepaid cellphone.
2. If you are reloading via Share-a-load or transferring load from a Globe or TM cellphone to your Globe Tattoo:
   1. Using your Globe or TM cellphone, text and send the text to “2” plus your Globe Tattoo SIM number which you took note of. For example 2905xxxxxxx
   2. Your Globe Tattoo will receive a message confirming the successful reload

• When doing Share-a-load via Globe Prepaid, available denominations are P1 – P150
• When doing Share-a-load via Globe Postpaid, available denominations are P1 – P150, P300 and P500

A Suggested Improvement

I’ve always wondered, from the first time I tested Globe Tattoo, why it’s not possible to reload through a text sent through the Globe Tattoo kit itself? All Globe Tattoo modems (including Globe MyFi) come with software that lets you control it from your computer. The software also comes with an SMS manager, which allows the SIM to send and receive text messages. Why can’t Globe Tattoo users reload their service by buying prepaid load cards, and sending something like “reload [card number] [card pin]” to 222?

Granted, AutoLoad Max and Share-a-Load are also very convenient. But here’s why I want to rely on prepaid load cards. It Keeps Costs Separate. Reloading your Globe Tattoo SIM with using a prepaid or postpaid phone (Share-a-Load) can make it harder to gauge how much you’re spending to go online. You may end up with no more load on your phone to do calls and text—or an expensive bill. A prepaid load card is a separate expenditure that you can easily track.

What do you think dear readers? Does my suggestion make sense? Or is their actually a way to reload a Globe Tattoo SIM through a text sent from the modem itself? Feel free to hit the comments.

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Another selling point is that the MK520′s receiver can support additional “compatible” wireless mice and keyboards. The ideal scenario: the buyer maintains two sets of wireless peripherals in the office and at home, but still use one receiver. While I’m not sure if everyone can afford to make Logitech’s revenue dreams come true, I’ve always had a wonderful time typing on their keyboards and pointing with their mice—wireless or otherwise.

One more thing: you can head over to logitechpilipinas.com, answer a bunch of obvious questions, and share some personal information to enter a raffle. 10 winners will be drawn at random, and will win one Logitech MK520 set each.

Check out the official press release below:

New Logitech Wireless Combo MK520 Puts Convenience and Control at Your Fingertips

Mouse and Keyboard Combo Offers Logitech Advanced 2.4 GHz Wireless Connectivity with One Tiny Logitech Unifying Receiver

Today Logitech introduced the Logitech® Wireless Combo MK520, a full-size mouse-and-keyboard combination featuring Logitech® Advanced 2.4 GHz connectivity, that puts comfort and control at your fingertips.

The tiny Logitech Unifying receiver is small enough to stay in your laptop when you’re on the go and wirelessly connects both the included mouse and keyboard to your computer, so both are ready to use whenever you need them. Plus, you can easily add another compatible mouse, keyboard, or number pad—without the hassle of multiple USB receivers.

The Unifying receiver delivers Logitech Advanced 2.4 GHz wireless connectivity that keeps you connected with virtually no delays or dropouts at a range of up to 10 meters. And it includes 128-bit AES keyboard encryption—one of the highest levels of security available, so your information is protected.

“With the Wireless Combo MK520, we’ve combined advanced wireless technology, with a mouse and keyboard that offer the features and capabilities that our users want most,” said Prasenjit Sarkar, Director of South Asia, Logitech. “With a long battery life, a high-performance laser, and quiet, low profile keys, the MK520 is going to make a lot of people happy.”

The full-size mouse feels good in either hand, even after long hours of use thanks to its comfortable, contoured design with soft rubber side grips. The mouse has a one year battery life, and the high-performance laser means you’ll enjoy smooth tracking on just about any surface. (Mouse does not track on glass or mirrors)

The concave design and softly rounded edges of the quiet, low-profile Logitech Incurve keys position your fingers properly and make it easier to glide from key to key. The keyboard has a three year battery life and also incorporates one-touch media controls so you can mute your computer or skip to the next song, instantly, without using your mouse. The Logitech Media Combo MK520 is available for a suggested retail price of 2,799.00 at all authorized retailers nationwide.

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If you’re already out to get your own Globe MyFi, there are two options. The prepaid package costs P7,000. For that price you get a router, some documentation, and a Globe Tattoo SIM. The bundled SIM is only capable of text and data; no calls over the network can be made with it.

People willing to commit to a two-year contract can opt for postpaid. This requires signing up for a Globe Tattoo Broadband postpaid account, either Plan 499 (for a total of P749 a month) or Plan 999 (P1,249). The postpaid package also comes with its own SIM.

The advertised savings is P1,000 compared to prepaid: P250 x 24 = P6,000. Though of course postpaid MyFi customers commit to spending P17,796 (under Plan 499) or P29,976 (Plan 999) over the course of two years.

Globe MyFi speed and reliability tests are coming soon, so stay tuned dear readers!

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What’s New?

The new iPod shuffle returns to the more rectangular shape of its predecessors, and of course retains the built-in clip. The latest iPod nano is a slightly larger version (1.61″ x 1.48″ x .35″) of its shuffle brother (1.24″ x 1.14″ x .34″). It’s now small enough to merit its own clip, but still creates enough space for a 1.54″ “multi-touch” screen. The design and shape of the new iPod touch isn’t that different from previous generations. But the inclusion of a 960 x 720 (HD) camera makes it the most versatile iPod touch ever. A front-facing camera also allows video chat through Apple’s FaceTime software

Heard of lower prices and better deals? Feel free to share in the comments.

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The Good

A Powerful CPU. From a price-for-performance perspective, the Intel Core i7 740QM remains unproven. Yet few other laptops on the local market actually run on quad-core processors that only use up as much power as they need.

NVIDIA’s GTX 285M. The 285M is billed as NVIDIA’s “fastest mobile GPU”. It can actually hold its own against high-end desktop graphics cards, with Tom’s Hardware ranking the GTX 285M 7th in their latest Hierarchy Chart.

The Blu-Ray Combo Drive. It would’ve been nice if the L4300-3D’s optical drive could’ve also burned Blu-Ray discs, instead of just loading them. But even without fulfilling the dreams of PlayStation 3 pirates, NEO’s laptop benefits from a feature not widely available locally.

The Bad

The Low-Resolution Display. The display resolution of the Elan L4300-3D’s 15.6″ screen is 1366 x 768—the same as the 12″ netbook I’m using to write this. Yes, a higher-resolution display would’ve pushed the Elan’s price even higher (NEO reps said the laptop would be priced at P100,000). But the low-quality screen can’t maximize the L4300-3D’s powerful processor, graphics, and Blu-Ray playback capability.

Gimmicky 3D
3D at this point is still a gimmick. Perhaps NEO should’ve done without this feature and spent more money on a better display.

In short, the 15.6″ Elan L4300-3D is an admirable effort by the local laptop reseller—that’s unfortunately shackled by a low-resolution screen.

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The original message read:

《中华人民共和国》万岁！！

菲律宾布拉干省人民政府 我来自伟大的中华人民共和国,你们应该就菲劫持人质事件作出一个道歉

你们在人质事件上的态度大大的错误导致人质被杀就是你们政府的不作为,不把咱中国人当人,请求你们道歉行不,菲律宾的哥？？？

Through the help of Sophie Uy, here’s a slightly edited translation:

I am from “Great” Mainland China and I think you should apologize for the victims of the Manila hostage bloodbath. You made a huge mistake on the attitude of hostage crisis which caused 8 Chinese die. You didn’t take Chinese people as real people so I am asking for your, Filipino, apology.

GameOPS also reported that the hacked site was updated the other day. The new page features a different layout and message, as well as a Tagalog translation copy-pasted from Google Translate.

As of this writing however, the page has been taken down.

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Thanks Maro!

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Take a cue from KC Montero who shared his sneaky transportation enterprise: “Color coding now playing hide seek on my way to a meeting at tv5.”

(This was around 5pm on a Thursday. So Mr. Montero drives a car with a license plate number ending in 7 or 8?)

Unfortunately, the MMDA was watching: “@KCMontero sir, MMDA repellant is obeying the traffic rules and regulations. :)”

Seriously though, the MMDA Twitter account has done a great job of providing timely traffic updates, complete with pictures! Now if only the government agency can push for better mass transit systems in Metro Manila!

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First things first: for those considering a large LED TV purchase anytime soon, I recommend that you have it wall-mounted. The UA40C7000WR is 2.65 centimeters thick, but it’s nearly a meter wide at 95.75 cm, and 64.84 cm high. It was challenging to find a large enough space to accommodate the TV with the included stand attached. Treating the appliance like a picture frame however only requires a lot of free wall space.

Setup

The TV comes with a stand, manuals, and adapters for a variety of video and audio sources. Those are required to streamline bulky RCA connectors so that they can fit behind the TV even when it’s wall-mounted. Slight recessing near the input ports are part of this accommodation.

Clearly, the TV has seen wide use as a demo unit for events and retail locations. Save for some smudges and dust I had to wipe off, the TV looked like it was in good condition. I made the mistake of attaching the stand mount first. The correct procedure is to attach the stand to the mount first, then attach the mount to the TV.

The remote deserves special attention. Little touches like the washed metal finish and a rubber connector that keeps the battery cover attached were very appealing.

Using With a Computer

As Samsung was also kind enough to send an HDMI cable, I was able to plug in my netbook and use the TV as an external display. Since my computer’s resolution (1366 x 768) is a lot smaller than the TV’s 1920 x 1080 resolution, I had to adjust the picture size through the remote.

Watching Media

My dad was around as I set up the TV. He excitedly declared we would hook up our DVD player to watch his new (non-bootleg) Lion King the Musical DVD. So that’s what we did. Learning how the production team adapted the original animation for the London-based production was interesting, while discovering my camera’s inability to capture the sheer visual scope of the TV was depressing.

The evening was spent watching DVDs of Agatha Christie’s Poirot. The TV—designed to display high-quality video—made the visual imperfections of the show (which started back in 1989) very clear. My dad and I still enjoyed watching David Suchet play the Belgian detective though, and he liked how the audio of the TV seemed to fill the whole room.

Testing 3D

To test the UA40C7000WR’s 3D capabilities, Samsung sent over several 3D glasses and a flash drive full of 3D videos. The company also sent over a bunch of Blu-Ray drives, but without a Blu-Ray player I wasn’t able to test them. So I plugged the flash drive into one of the TV’s USB ports (there are two of them) and loaded the demo videos through the “Content” Menu. Again, everything was managed through the remote. As you can’t enjoy the full 3D experience without looking at the TV with the included 3D glasses, the pictures below won’t convey an accurate sense.

I learned something new: A video designed for display on 3D-capable devices is actually rendered as two side-by-side frames, one for the left and right eyes respectively. When 3D mode is activated, these two frames are merged together, giving the slightly mirrored effect you see in the pictures above.

Though I really did see images pop out, with some items taking on the impression of added depth, my opinion on 3D technology in general remains unchanged.

Conclusion

When I finally have enough money to buy my own LCD or LED TV, Samsung will be one of the brands on the top of my list. I’ve always believed that the Korean manufacturer knows what it’s doing regarding displays, and this apparent quality is worth the additional expense compared to “budget” LCD brands.

My brief encounter with the UA40C7000WR has done little to change this opinion. The TV’s color were very brilliant yet easy on the eyes, very viewable even in an area with lots of sunlight. The built-in speakers were quite loud, and many times I had to tone down the volume to protect my ears.

In other words, based on my limited up-close experience with TVs, I’d recommend this 40-inch 3D LED TV in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, the 3D feature of this TV is nothing special. I still believe that 3D technology (in its current state) is still a gimmick. I would buy the UA40C7000WR if I had the money (SRP is P170,000 under installment, and P153,000 for straight cash buyers), but not for the 3D.

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