Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by terranova

iPhone 11 Pro Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 15:17:23 +0800

Hi guys.

My last post was on the iPhone X on 3 Nov 2017 (link) and a few weeks earlier, on 22 Sep 2017, the iPhone 8 (link). Earlier iPhones in my signature.

Today, 20 Sep 2019 is the launch of generation iPhone 11. I’ve been purchasing every numerical generation of iPhone since day one (yes, since 2007), and it saddens me to say, in all honesty, that this latest iteration is the least exciting, at least to me. I was half a mind seriously considering not getting this. Nonetheless, here I am with the new iPhone 11 Pro. Why? I have no idea really. Maybe I’m just an apple zombie.

Ok, enough grandmother story. Below is the unboxing of the iPhone 11 Pro 256GB Space Gray, and some shots of the much talked about Midnight Green. The Midnight Green’s supply to HK is very limited in this first batch, and I understand even telco operators have not been supplied with Midnight Green in the first batch. They’re only coming in the second batch, timeframe unconfirmed but highly likely early Oct 2019.

My usual caveat applies - sorry if the photos are crap. I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking. Hope you find it useful.

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Note the indent on the inside of the cover, for the new cameras.

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This is the Space Gray.

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Inside the box. And the new fast charger.

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USB-C <-> Lightning cable included.

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The shiny chrome sides. The White version comes with a silver chrome finish, which is actually really nice.

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The much touted camera. The new OLED screen is really nice.

Ok, that's it. Hope you enjoyed it.

One final note. We know that the iPhone 11 Pro comes with dual sim - but get this - the HK version now comes with two physical SIM slots. Unlike its predecessor XS which came with one physical slot and one eSIM. Only the XS Max had 2 physical SIM slots. This time around, they’re all dual physical SIMs, and applies to all HK, China and Macau units. FYI.

Xbox One X : Project Scorpio Edition

terranova — Sun, 12 Nov 2017 20:36:01 +0800

Hi everyone.

It's been a while since I last started a thread here.

Back in 24 Nov 2013, I shared the unboxing of the US Day One Edition of the Xbox One.

Almost 4 years on, Microsoft finally launched the latest Xbox One X here in Hong Kong on 7 Nov 2017. Most HK retailers are forcing customers to purchase at least 3 games to go with their day one units. Commercialism is just another label for greed, if you ask me. Anyway, here's my sharing of the unboxing of the limited Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition.

p/s: sorry for the delay, I've been traveling and only had the chance to post this weekend.

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The box front.

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The back of the box.

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Each Project Scorpio Edition has a unique number.

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The side of the box.

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Let's start unboxing it.

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Comes with standard freebies codes.

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Comes with HDMI cables and one Project Scorpio Edition controller (more on that below).

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The console has a nice 2-tier design, with the top sporting a greyish tone and the base a solid dark black. The unique Project Scorpio label replaces the standard Xbox One X lettering.

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The other unique cosmetic feature of the Project Scorpio Edition is this dimple design on the console's body. I was a bit disappointed as I thought it would actually be a pimplish textured, but no it's just a coating design i.e. when you run your hands over it, it's just ordinarily smooth and not dimpled textured.

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The console from a different angle.

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There's a cute little Easter egg on the right side panel - the message says "Hello from Seattle - Xbox One X".

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The rear panel. There's a classy little Xbox label on the left rear end.

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Now let's have a look at the special edition Project Scorpio controller. Besides the obvious green lettering, the A/B/X/Y buttons are also colourless and sport a classy black hue. Nice.

Well, that's about it. Hope you enjoyed the photos above. Until the next version .....

iPhone X Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 03 Nov 2017 22:42:23 +0800

Hi guys.

My last post was on the iPhone 8 on 22 Sept 2017. Link here.

Today, I'm back with the unboxing of the much awaited iPhone X.

My usual caveat applies - sorry if the photos are crap. I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking. Hope you enjoy it.

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Note the box art is different for different models. The one on the left is the Silver unit and the one on the right is the Space Grey. Also, the box art bulges slightly to give it a "3D" feel.

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The standard inlays. The quick start notes now provides basic introduction to the new swipe actions and button combos.

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Stripping off the plastic wraps.

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Standard bundled accessories.

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Various comparison shots of the Silver vs Space Grey. Note the chrome on the silver is different from the space grey.

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"The Notch".

That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed it. Until the next time .....

iPhone 8 Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 22:41:27 +0800

Hi guys.

My last post here was on 16 Sept 2016. I didn’t think I’d be back so early, but as you all know, Apple broke the traditional two-year cycle this year with a double whammy of the iPhone 8 and iPhone X. If this was the year of the iPhone 7S, I wouldn’t be writing this post. But with the launch of the iPhone 8 today, I’m back.

This also reminds me of a particular post from the previous thread here:

QUOTE(attw @ Sep 24 2016, 08:42 PM)

Out of curiosity bro, if indeed Apple skips the 7S next year and go directly to iPhone 8 as speculated, can we expect another exceptional unboxing photo story from you?

Anyway, thanks for sharing. Great stuffs![right][snapback]81836442[/snapback][/right]

Hahaha. Well, the prophecy came true. I can’t say it’ll be an exceptional post, but I’ll do my best as always.

My usual caveat applies. Sorry if the photos are crap. It was taken just now (at night) under harsh lighting at home. Anyway, enough grandmother story. I’ll let the photos do the talking.

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The iPhone 8 box.

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Unboxing.

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The innards. Similar accessories as iPhone 7.

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The front.

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The back.

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Comparison with iPhone 7. Note the fineprint under "iPhone" on the 7 has now disappeared from the 8. Looks cleaner that way.

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Comparison with iPhone 7's camera.

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iOS11 pre-installed.

Hope you enjoyed that. Sorry the photos aren't that great.

Until my next post on 3 November ……

iPhone 7 Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 16 Sep 2016 12:08:53 +0800

Hi guys. 2 years have passed since my last post here. So you know what that means. Another new iPhone numerical iteration.

As usual, I'll just let the photos do the talking. My usual caveat applies .... sorry for the shitty photos. Great hardware (iPhone 6 camera) at the hands of a novice photographer will yield crappy photos.

And in case you're wondering why this time there's only one iPhone instead of the usual two units, it's because someone *cough*apple*cough* failed to deliver enough Jet Black units for the day one launch. My very reliable insider informs me that there's only a very very, did i say very? small number of Jet Blacks for the launch. So I'm not getting my Jet Black unit until (most likely) early Oct at the earliest. I'll post an update once I get it.

So in the mean time, here's the unboxing photos for the iPhone 7 Black.

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The embossed silhouette of the iPhone 7 on the top surface of the box is similar to that of the iPhone 6. However, this time around, the Apple logo will follow the handset's colour. So if you purchased a Black unit, the logo will be black.

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This time around, the first visual that greets you upon unboxing is a slip docket, rather than the handset. What's in the docket, you ask?

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There's a new features cheat sheet and the usual SIM slot pin. What's new and interesting is a pair of translucent Apple logo stickers. Not sure what I'll do with these though. Last thing the world needs is more Apple marketing materials.

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Removing the handset reveals the "new" iPhone 7 accessories. The Lightning EarPods and the 3.5mm headphones jack <-> Lightning adapter.

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The new flushed Home button. Apologies for the fugly screen protector that came bundled by the local telco.

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The back of the iPhone 7. I must admit the Black looks really really really better irl than I imagined in my little head. In fact, I might just have to admit it looks even better than the Jet Black that I got to toy with briefly (see below).

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The camera lense.

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The stereo speaks which took the place of the earphone jack. What's done is done, world. Move on. The antennas are no longer visible and buttons are well flushed.

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The iPhone 7 comes with iOS 10 out of the box.

There's no need to do a physical comparison between the iPhone 7 vs 6 obviously this time around. So that saves me some time.

Hope you enjoyed the PhotoStory. Until the next time .... (when I get my hands on the Jet Black).

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hi guys. Ok, my Jet Black finally arrived yesterday, ahead of the earlier anticipated early Oct timeline. So here are the follow-up photos as promised.

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The Jet Black comes in an all-black box, and an accentuated shiny outline around the embossed iP7 Jet Black on the top. Looks a lot better than the packaging that came with the Black model.

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Shine, baby, shine!

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The back. Black vs Jet Black. The photo doesn't really show it well, but the Apple logo on the Black is umm ... black whereas the logo on the Jet Black is a slightly dark-tinged mirror finish.

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Notice the mirror-like finish on the Jet Black. If I hear the words "fingerprint magnet" again in this lifetime, it's one time too many.

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I take back what I said earlier about the Jet Black feeling plasticky. It's NOT. The iPhone 7 is also heavier and heftier than the 6, so feels very solid in hand.

So this concludes my PhotoStory of the iPhone 7. I'll see you in 2 years' time .....

iPhone 6 Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 19 Sep 2014 23:12:57 +0800

Hi guys. As some of you who may already be familiar with my previous posts, I don't say much and usually just let the photos do the talking.

In case you may not remember me, my previous post on iPhone 5 day one unboxing here. My usual caveat applies .... I'm crap at photography. All photos taken with iPhone 5 camera under poor lighting conditions.

Here are the unboxing photos for the iPhone 6.

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This time around, the box is pretty plain jane. No colors to even distinguish what's inside. Note the embossed silhouette of the iPhone 6 on the top surface of the box.

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Stripping the box reveals these shiny new toys. The accessories are pretty standard and do not deviate from what was included in the iPhone 5 and 5S, which was covered in my previous post.

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The top. Now clean lines and void of any buttons.

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The back.

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The bottom.

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The rocker buttons. And note that protruding camera lense which now juts out slightly.

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Comparing the back of the new iPhones 6 and iPhones 5. Note the lighter shade of space grey on the new iPhone 6.

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iPhone 5 vs iPhone 6 size and thickness comparison.

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The obligatory family potrait of the iPhones 6, 5 and 4.

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Hope you enjoyed this brief PhotoStory. Till the next time ...

iPhone 5 Dock

terranova — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 22:28:58 +0800

After much delay since Apple's transition to Lightning, I've begun to notice the first appearance of "official" Lightning docks in the market. ("official" in that these are Apple-sanctioned docks, and ignoring that infamous and badly-produced China-made Lightning dock which appeared soon after the iPhone 5 was released months ago, and shall not be identified here).

Just sharing the photos below for info and reference. I bought these from the Apple HK online store. Several funky colours to choose from. Eventually settled for the Red and Silver units.

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On the plus side. The dock has a good build quality (not excellent, but good enough). The base is rubber-padded, so does a satisfactory job at staying in place without sliding all over. The Lightning plug itself is solidly anchored to the base, but with enough freeplay flexibility to accommodate iPhones with slim casing, with open bottom.

The downside is that you cannot detach the cable from the dock. And there's no Audio Out socket unlike the original iPhone dock. If your casing is of the thick variety, then this won't fit.

At HK$348, I think it's good value considering that a standalone Lightning cable cost HK$158. Provided you're looking for a dock, that is.

Link to Apple HK Online Store

Link to product website

iPhone 5 Unboxing

terranova — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 14:43:40 +0800

Some photos of the iPhone 5 unboxing. My usual caveat applies - apologies for the poor photography. I'm hopeless with a camera. Anyway, I'll let the photos do the talking.

A 360-view of the box.

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Inside the box.

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The new adapter Lightning is really really small.

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The usual pin is provided.

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The new EarPods.

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A family photo. 3G -> 4 -> 4S -> 5. The original iPhone (1) is somewhere in the cupboard.

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It's black, it's white, yea yea yea.

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Upon switching on.

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Height comparison - 4/4S vs 5.

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Width comparison - 4/4S vs 5. Same width.

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Thickness comparison - 4/4S vs 5.

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The new Nano SIM.

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Hope you enjoyed the photos. Cheers.

New photos just added:
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Hong Kong High End Audio Visual Show 2012

terranova — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 04:15:15 +0800

The Hong Kong High End Audio Visual Show 2012 started on Friday and ends Sunday (today). As in previous years, this annual event is held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

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For those who may have missed it, last year's show was posted here if you're interested.

Anyway, let's get on with this year's show. I was at the show on Friday, so sorry for the late post. I don't have much to say, so I'll just let the photos do most of the talking.

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As you can see, the queue was pretty long and kept going like this for the most part of the morning. Easily more than 2,000 in the line, and took exactly an hour of queueing before reaching the ticket booth.

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This year's ticket costs HK$80, up from last year's HK$60. As in previous years, you get a complimentary SACD, so it's not all that bad.

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This is the foyer area just along the ticketing booths. The show is spread over 3 floors, the main hall on the 3rd floor and the "studio" rooms and smaller halls are spread over the 2nd and 4th floors.

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The view as you enter the main hall.

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Triangle's booth, occupying the same spot they did last year. JL Audio's Gotham subbie on the right.

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This year though, they've done away with the mini-theatre (which at last year's event showcased the Magellan Grand Concert). Instead, they've chosen to go "mid-range" in a more homely setting.

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They're not the only ones going downscale this year. Chord introduced their "baby Chord", called Chordette. These really piqued my interest .... not the least bit because the setup on the left costs HK$92,000 and the one on the right costs HK$26,000! And that's just the Chordettes and speakers. Bring your own iTunes tracks.

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Mission and Audiolab's booth.

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KEF's booth. The Blades were there, but just like last year, they were not on demo. The Muon was absent this year.

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The new white R Series.

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The star of the KEF booth this year is the new LS50 monitors. The source was an Arcam setup (CD37 SACD player, D33 DAC and A38 Integrated Amp), playing at 68db. I sat there for 20 mins listening to a variety of genre ..... truly big and rich sound from such a small box. The LS50 hardly broke a sweat. I just loved it! Being a KEF fan, maybe I'm slightly biased .... sorry htkaki's bro Ben! .... I was so taken by it that I almost pre-ordered one at a show price of HK$9,980. Fortunately, I came to my senses .... NO impulse buying! lol ... according to the KEF rep, there are no ready stocks globally as production is still catching up with existing orders ... so that was a bummer!

I'm still dreaming of the rose gold Uni-Q drivers.

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This one is for Shuto. The Sonus Faber room. The rotating centrepiece is the exquisite Aida.

HK Audio Visual Show 2011

terranova — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:26:44 +0800

Hi guys. The annual HK Audio Visual Show started yesterday at the HKCEC. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera and so had to rely on my iphone! So my apologies for the poor pics. Anyway, thought I'd share some of the photos here. Nothing much for me to say, so basically I'll just let the photos do the talking.

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The snakeline to buy tickets for the show. There were easily at least 1,000 guys ahead of me. How do I know? Cos the limited edition SACD was just sold out before my turn. Lol. Anyway, basic admission ticket is HK$60 and you get this wonderfully orange goodie bag (sarcasm) with an SACD.

The main entrance on the 3rd floor. The show is spread out over 3 floors (2nd to 4th floors).

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The KEF pavillion right at the main entrance. The KEF Blades and Muon were there.

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The entry level Q series and Reference series. No XQ series? What the …..

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As some of you know, I’m a KEF user/fan, but imho bad decision on the local KEF distributor’s part as NONE of the speakers were playing and there was no listening room. Boo!

The Arcam stuff are in the same pavillion (same distributor). Again, pairing the all-in-one Acram Solo with the XQ series? That’s blasphemy!! The music coming out from the XQ20 from this pairing was atrocious and does not do the XQ series any justice. Sigh.

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Next up is htkaki’s cousin over here in HK. Triangle’s local rep.

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JL Audio’s Gotham subbie. My dreamgirl.

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The local rep was showcasing Triangle’s Magellan Grand Concert in their dimly-lit audition room. Paired with JL Audio’s Gothams and a whole bunch of Chord monoblocks.

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HK$690k list price for the Grand Concert. Htkaki, anjua? can buy ah at this price?

Next up is for Shuto and the other SF fans here. They were showcasing the Amati futura.

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The Amati sounded sweet but SF’s room was very visitor-unfriendly. No seats in the audition room and the sweet spot in the centre was taken up by this dude:

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The Guarneri Evolution is truly a beautiful piece of art.

Zellaton.

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German-Physiks.

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What Hi-Fi 2008 Award Winners

terranova — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 23:39:08 +0800

What Hi-Fi's 2008 Awards are out.

http://awards.whathifi.com/winners.cfm

Looks like B&W are big winners in the speakers category. QED seem to have disappeared from the cables category. As always, no Velodynes awarded in the subwoofer category. The PV1 won for the second year running.

[WTA] Audio quality from HTPC for music playback

terranova — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 10:36:50 +0800

Appreciate if any of the sifus here can advise.

I'm currently running a htpc setup to play all my music. Briefly, my htpc setup : Intel Core2Duo E6550 2.33GHz + ASUS P5K-E WiFi + 2GB DDR2-800 RAM + ATI Radeon HD2400Pro HDMI Port + Sound Card OnBoard (Optical Out).

I use EAC to rip from original CDs into WMA Lossless and stored on hard disk. I'm running Vista Media Centre.

The htpc is hooked up (via digital optical out using the onboard sound card) to a Denon AVR and decent speakers. I play music in Pure Direct mode on the AVR.

I'm looking to improve the audio quality from my htpc setup. I noticed the sound is brighter and I get more clarity when I play via my PS3 (streamed from NAS) which is also hooked up to the AVR. The difference is very obvious to my peasant ears. This is what triggered me to look into this.

I'm not too concerned about playing movies, dvd, etc from the htpc. I just want to improve the audio output quality from my htpc setup.

Would changing to a bit-perfect sound card help? What else can I do?

Would really appreciate any advise. Thank you very much.

Harmony One remote control

terranova — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:46:18 +0800

Not sure if there’s already an existing thread in here on this. Did a quick search and did not find anything. So thought I’d share my initial impression of the new Logitech Harmony One universal remote control and also a brief comparison to its predecessor (in case anyone is thinking of upgrading to the One).

Having owned and used its predecessor, the Harmony 880/885, setting up the Harmony One is very simple as the remote management software from Logitech automatically imports all the previous settings and configuration from my previous 880 into the One. All except the favourite channels settings though. Bummer.

However, if you’re using a Harmony for the first time, then it may initially be daunting as the web-based software takes some time to familiarise. However, once you get going, it’s really rather simple. Specify your hardware model and the software accesses the Harmony database and retrieves the remote control code for your hardware. If it’s not available or really obscure, your Harmony remote can learn by receiving the IR command from your device’s existing remote. I’ve scattered some sample screenshots of the management software throughout this review.

The form factor of the One beats the 880 hands down. Although slightly longer, the One is more ergonomic, the remote doesn’t feel as slippery as the 880, the hard buttons are better organised, bigger and feels more solid overall. It is slimmer than the 880 though slightly broader at certain parts.

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A noteworthy improvement is the accompanying docking / recharging base station. I really hated the 880’s base station as recharging the unit was usually a hit or miss affair. The contact points on the remote needs to be placed with surgical precision (ok, slight exaggeration on my part!) on the charging pins (on the base station) for the unit to recharge. Many a times, a slight nudge or movement would displace the contact points and you find out the next morning that your remote failed to charge. This has happened so many times that it was no longer funny to play the “wake up and see if your remote was charged” game. The One’s docking station is much improved, the One sits firmly in its base when you plonk it down. The LED light at the top turns green when it’s fully charged. A nice addition over the previous version.

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The main enhancement of the One over the 880 is the introduction of a hi-res touch-screen. The only other Harmony remote in the market right now that has touch screen is the Harmony 1000, but that sports a different form factor altogether (the 1000 is a tablet style remote). The pic below may not do the One justice, but I can attest that the new screen on the One is really beautiful, bright and clear and much better than the one found on the 880. There are also 2 context-based soft keys at the bottom and 2 arrow keys on the side of the touch-screen. If there was any complain, it would be that the new screen only affords 3 activities to a single screen whereas the old screen could accommodate 8 activities on one page (however to activate any of the 8 activities requires you to press that tiny button next to the activity, something people with fat fingers like myself may find hard to do).

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You can have as many pages of activities as you need on the One. But I’ve read on forums that if you go beyond 6 pages, the remote becomes sluggish. I only use 3 pages, so can’t really comment on that. But heck, I’d take the One any day.

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Press the desired Activity on the touch-screen (e.g. Watch Astro TV) will trigger a sequence of pre-defined instructions (e.g. switch on TV, switch on AV Receiver, select input mode on AV Receiver, switch on Astro decoder, switch on air-conditioner!!) all in a single press. Other universal remotes call this a “macro” function, but Logitech calls their macros “Activities”. Different name, same thing.

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You can customise your favourite channels on the touch screen through the management software.

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Another improvement of the One over the 880 : Favourite Channels now can accommodate 4 pages (4 pages x 6 channels = 24 favourite channels) to a single Activity whereas the 880 restricted this to only 2 pages x 8 channels = 16 favourite channels per Activity. Hence, if I wanted to include more channels beyond the 16 channels allocation on the 880, I would have had to create 2 activities e.g. “Watch Astro 1” and “Watch Astro 2”.

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Besides adding your favourite channels on the touchscreen, you can also customise the touchscreen to include functions or buttons not found on the hard keys.

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Besides the Activities macros, you can also control each device in your household individually like you would on a normal remote. You do this by going to the Devices function, select the Device of your choice, and carry out the remote function. This would be useful particularly for standalone devices that do not require a sequence of events (e.g. control the air-conditioner, open the electric gate, etc.). The colour scheme on the touchscreen changes to amber when you are in Device mode. In Activity mode, it’s blue. You can also change the color theme in the remote settings page. I chose to stay with the default theme.

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Although the 880 has served me well over the years, it’s time to move on. The One is a major improvement over the 880 in many ways, and then some. If there is one complain, it would be that the One’s black glossy mirror finish really shows up finger-print residue. Impressively, included in the package that came with the One is a micro-fiber cloth that does an admirable cleaning job. Kudos to Logitech.

Footnote:
(1) Sorry if the photos are not very good. I’m lousy at handling a camera. *shy*
(2) If this thread doesn’t belong in the Audiophile section, would appreciate if the mods would move this to another section deemed appropriate. Cheers.

Command & Conquer 3

terranova — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 22:05:01 +0800

C&C3 for the Xbox360 deserves its own thread, so here it is...... enjoy the game, my fellow C&C kakis.

Go download the demo NOW on XBL. It's about 1GB though.

Xbox 360 Wireless Headset

terranova — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 21:42:08 +0800

Package comes with AC charger and spare ear loop.

This is the hole to charge the internal battery.

Flip side of the headset.

When you charge the battery, the green led scrolls the mouthpiece. Pretty cool.

The headset is pretty compact and small and measures 10cm in total length. The rubber ear loop appears pretty durable yet nimble to fit all ear shape and size.

Have yet to test the audio quality .... still charging the battery. Will update later.

Update:

ok, tested the headset last night for about 20 mins. The incoming audio quality is loud and clear, and outgoing audio is also good based on what my friend on the receiving end told me. I can conclude that the audio quality is much better than the Plantronics headset.

As mentioned earlier, the LED on the mouthpiece acts as an indicator while the battery is charging and stops flashing when battery is full. Besides that, each of the LED also acts as an indicator of which headset is hooked up to which controller i.e. headset will light up "1" to indicate this is paired with controller #1 and "2" will light up when paired with controller #2 and so on. You can designate which of the 1-4 to pair with by pressing the button located beside the LED. That probably also means that you can connect 4 wireless headsets to a single console.

Lastly, the Fall update introduced an additional icon just beside the controller icon on your Live screen to check the battery level of the headset. A full charge should take no more than 4 hours.

ChromeHounds

terranova — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 17:30:55 +0800

Official Site - nothing much there yet, except some videos and screenshots. Also here.

ChromeHounds Single-Player Impressions and Multiplayer Impressions at teamxbox.

Doggie style:

QUOTE

Heavy Gunner - An artillery specialist who is capable of terminating an enemy headquarters from a distance. Their role is to successfully stay away from the action and knockout the enemy HQ's.

Scout - A reconnaissance specialist who is capable of covering large areas of land with speed. Their main role is to charge the enemies early and grasp the progress of the battle.

Defender - An escort that protects friendly HOUNDS and headquarters. Their primary role is to intercept the enemies that are invading headquarters and to guard Heavy Gunner and Commander HOUNDS.

Sniper - A sharp shooter who supports their members from the rear. Their main role is to back up the friendly units and make preemptive moves to the enemies who are making progress.

Soldier - A front line specialist who plays a vital role in close combat situations. Their main role is to destroy the enemy headquarters based on information and strategies brought by their Scout.

Tactics Commander - A leader who collects information and verbally orders the squad units to carry out their strategies. Their role is to analyze the map and effectively communicate with the squad members. Their main task in multiplayer matches is to expand the Network Area, thus providing teammate-to-teammate communications across the entire map.

You'll need $$$ to build, equip, upgrade your highly-customisable Hounds in the Garage.

QUOTE

The best way to build up war booty is to partake in Free Battles. Free Battles are basically standard fare first person shooter match types using HOUNDs. Matches can consist of up to twelve HOUNDs per match, and are of the ranked or unranked variety. Quick Match, Custom Match, and Create Match options apply.

Ready for The War?

QUOTE

Once you've earned some precious jack in the Basic Battle mode, and have gotten enough training, a good idea would be to enlist to fight the Neroimus War.

The Neroimus War portion of Chromehounds's online area is essentially a persistent campaign that allows you to fight for one of three nations looking to control a land mass. You'll first have to decide on one of the three countries to ally with. It's important to ally with the same country as your proposed squad mates of course, so make sure this is coordinated before selecting.

20 in one clan, but only 6 fight while 14 lepak.

QUOTE

You can build a twenty person squad for Neroimus War, but only six HOUNDs can be deployed at a given time. Battles can take place against human targets or A.I. enemies, which means that you can always jump on line and fight the good fight, even if the server is empty.

The long road to victory.

QUOTE

the Neroimus War is a territories style encounter that occurs over a lengthy period. Your objective is to take out as many enemy HOUNDs as possible, eliminate the enemy HQ, and to control as many COMBAS points as possible. The true battle winner is the squad that captures the most COMBAS', but this is quite hard to do without taking out enemy HOUNDs, HQ's, and NA's along the way.

Watch the clock - you only have 2 months to turn the enemy into rubble. Brings new meaning to our 5 minute GRAW games eh?

QUOTE

The fighting in the Neroimus War continues until two of the three teams have been defeated, or two months has lapsed; whichever comes first. After two months, the match will reset to pre-war conditions, which also means a short server maintenance period. If your nation happens to be wiped out within the two month period, it is possible to exile to another country and continue fighting. This is known as treason in many parts of the world as a FYI.

Money money money. It's always about MONEY.

QUOTE

War costs big bucks, so be prepared to shell out the ducats for repairs, fuel, and fresh ammunition. Victories equal money to pay for such things, so being prolific as a squad will truly help the coffers. Countries will dole out additional funds based on occupied territories, as protected these new lands is reason for increased military spending. Bigger defense spending means better R&D for more advanced HOUND parts, and increases in cash amounts for victories.

Team Malaysia - are you ready?

QUOTE

Chromehounds is perfect for clans that are online to win, as gaming groups have the discipline to follow a leader's orders and carry out their objectives. Having six snipers on a team ain't gonna' cut it, so you can kind of see why having a set squad is paramount in Chromehounds. You can run and gun, but odds are that you'll die and be at least somewhat disappointed with how things work out. Scouts need to be doing their job, Snipers need to be perched high, Defenders defending, Gunners blasting, and so forth. Bottom line: Play Chromehounds as it was designed to be played, and you'll be hard pressed to find a better online experience for the Xbox 360.

Hope the game lives up to the hype. We'll know next week, 29 June.

Edit - added list below, courtesy of ChisaKatana.

Unlockable How to Unlock
All Tact. Complete (20) Complete all missions in Story Mode.
Biped Specialist (20) Deploy on bipedal Chassis 50 times.
Bloodless Award Win 5 times w/o attacking enemy
Bronze Flag (20) Secure COMBASs total of 100 times.
Bronze Hammer (20) Destroy enemy HQ and win 50 times
Bronze Patriot (20) Stay w/ same nation for 3 seasons.
Bronze Wing (20) Destroy 50 or more enemy HOUNDs.
Capital Occupation (20) Affiliated nation destroys another.
Combat Award (20) Win 10 times when outnumbered
Command Complete (20) Complete Commander arc in Story Mode.
Command Valor (20) Commander experience level maxed out.
Crushing Award (20) Wipe out enemy and live 100 times.
Defense Complete (20) Complete Defender arc in Story Mode.
Defense Valor (20) Defender experience level maxed out.
Distinguished Service (20) Awarded for destroying the unidentified enemy weapon
Gold Cross (20) #1 in seasonal fame at end.
Gold Eagle (20) #1 in total fame for a given period.
Gold Hexagon (20) #1 in average seasonal fame at end.
Gold Lion (20) #1 in seasonal conquest points at end.
Gold Sword Cross (20) #1 in total conquest pts for period.
Gold Wing (20) #1 in avg total fame for a given period.
Gunner Complete (20) Complete H. Gunner arc in Story Mode.
Gunner Valor (20) H. Gunner experience level maxed out.
Hound Specialist (20) Own 1 of each part.
Hover Specialist (20) Deploy on hover Chassis 50 times.
Humane Award End 5 times in a row w/o killing enemy
Inverse Specialist (20) Deploy on inverse Chassis 50 times.
Marching Service (20) Travel total of 1000000.
Military Service (20) Deploy total of 300 times or more.
Multi Spec. (20) Deploy on multi Chassis 50 times.
Nation Resurrector (20) Successfully revive affiliated nation.
Neroimus War Medal (40) Affiliated nation wins Neroimus War.
Red Flag (20) Win a total of 100 times or more.
Scout Complete (20) Complete Scout arc in Story Mode.
Scout Valor (20) Scout experience level maxed out.
Silver Flag (20) Secure COMBASs total of 300 times.
Silver Hammer (20) Destroy enemy HQ and win 100 times.
Silver Patriot (20) Donate to affiliate nation 1 time
Silver Wing (20) Destroy total of 100 enemy HOUNDs.
Sniper Complete (20) Complete Sniper arc in Story Mode.
Sniper Valor (20) Sniper experience level maxed out.
Soldier Complete (20) Complete Soldier arc in Story Mode.
Soldier Valor (20) Soldier experience level maxed out.
Storming Award (20) Attack opponent first 30 times.
Survival Award (20) Return alive 10 times or more in a row.
Tact. Instructor (20) Top marks in every Story Mode mission.
Touring Service (20) Deploy to every battlefield once.
Tread Spec. (20) Deploy on treaded Chassis 50 times.
Wheel Specialist (20) Deploy on wheeled Chassis 50 times.

Plantronics X30

terranova — Sat, 29 Apr 2006 19:43:01 +0800

My new toy.

Order placed : 26 April
Ship date : 26 April
Arrived : 29 April

Tried to order from gamestop.com as their shipping was cheapest at USD25.00 but their credit card server could not process my credit card due to some bank-merchant issues according to the Customer Service whom I spoke with.

So they suggested I place my order with Barnes & Noble, which is their affiliate, but has a different credit card server which could process international orders better. But B&N shipping charges is USD34.99 even though the order would still be shipped from gamestop.com (B&N just the portal to process the sales).

In the end, went with amazon.com as their shipping was slightly cheaper at USD31.99 even though product is still shipped from gamestop.com.

Gist of the story - gamestop.com has stock of x30 if anyone is interested. Irregardless of whether you buy from B&N or amazon.com, the product is still shipped by gamestop.com. So if you can, get it from gamestop.com as shipping is cheaper, provided your credit card gets through.

My final damage :
X30 USD29.99
Shipping USD31.99
Total USD61.98

I'll do a short review later after I spend time with it.

Over G Energy Airforce

terranova — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 19:10:08 +0800

I'm a big fan of PS2's Ace Combat series. So far, no signs of Ace Combat coming over to xbox 360. So my itchy fingers couldn't tahan. Went out and bought this.

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Official website here.

Synopsis here.

Screenshots here.

Took a gamble as this is for the moment a Japan-only release. Was expecting everything to be in Japanese. To my surprise, if your 360's language is set to English, the game loads with English menu text and English voice-overs and subtitles in-game. So heads-up for you flight jockeys out there (points to Stringie).

The US version is due for release on 15 May 06 - hopefully it's region free. At least then your manual is in English unlike mine which is all Nihongo.

Datel's XSATA

terranova — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 15:58:24 +0800

It's finally here - the sata-usb connector to hook up the 360's hdd to yr pc/notebook.

Link here.

Do note certain contents (such as purchased arcade games, themes) are still machine-locked or profile-locked so u just can't freely transfer stuff in and out of your hdd - these are digitally signed. Gamer profiles, game saves (including xbox1 game saves) & trailers (hd-wmv) work ok. I still haven't figure out if we can transfer songs (wma) directly onto the hdd.

Works with xplorer360 software. Datel didn't even bother to write their own software for this unlike the bundled software in their Memory Unit transfer kit.

Can't wait to see what the 360sata and AvaLaunch teams will come up with as a result of this. Their respective products are scheduled to be commercially released next week.