High Definition Ninja

HX9V: The Survivor

2012-03-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

Next month will mark the one year anniversary of my owning the Sony HX9V. I can't recall another camera in the last three years that I've owned for that long of a stretch which is kind of sad, but also says a lot about this compact marvel.

The key features that have kept it around are:

16x zoom - That's 24mm to 384mm which is an incredibly useful range in such a small camera.

Image quality - It's just average, but certainly gets the job done.

1080p 60p movies with Active Steady Shot - This is the key features for me. The 1080p 60p movies look AMAZING and the steady shot is the best there is giving you a near steady cam like smoothness. Racked out to 384mm, it's not quite as smooth, but still impressive. Watching these movies back from the PlayStation 3 or Vimeo is a real treat. This has replaced any notion of ever needing a dedicated camcorder.

Low light - For photos, the Auto+, Twilight, and Anti-Blur modes are are wonderful for getting good shots without flash in dark conditions. For movies, I've yet to find another camera that can shoot better low light footage outside of camcorder above $1000.

There was this falcon sitting outside the ledge of my office building. Everyone had their phones trying to get a good shot, but he was fairly far out. This shot was taken at the full 384mm focal length and in Auto+ mode and it came out killer. Because the HX9V is a compact cam, it is always in my work bag just for times like this.

Of course the camera is far from perfect. Like I mentioned, the image quality is not the best in its class and it's operational speed is a touch slow (turning on the cam, switching modes).

That brings us to the HX20V/HX30V which arrive in stores this May. The updated versions give us 20x zoom (25-500mm), a boost to 18 megapixels, and a new optical zoom tech that promises to deliver clear shots at 40x zoom. Those aren't really tempting features by themselves that would force my hand to upgrade so I'll have to see if it addresses my two most wanted improvement, image quality and operational speed.

If I do upgrade, the HX20V uses the same battery as the HX9V so I'm set there. If you are thinking of getting either camera, I highly recommend grabbing a spare battery or two.

One down, three left

2011-12-02T12:39:00.001-08:00

So the Nikon V1 is out. It was a great cam and a system I'd like to revisit once they get some fast primes and new bodies (lower prices wouldn't hurt either).

You can read the full story here.

Right now the FZ150 is the other cam on the bubble. The a850 and Nex-5N aren't going anywhere for awhile. Whatever my decision, I'm not sure I should part with the FZ150 too soon. The price has come down aggressively and stayed down since Black Friday so I would take a considerable loss if I sold it now.

The most prudent course of action is to shoot and enjoy the cam as much as possible until I greatly need the funds for something else. I could get lucky and the camera might run into shortages and the value comes back up a tiny bit. Either way, it's better to hold on. Especially since it's a great camera that produces wonderful shots...in great light.

The current line up

2011-11-18T14:03:00.001-08:00

Not all can stay for long.

I’m still shooting mainly with the Sony Nex-5N and lately, the Panasonic FZ150. The Nex-5N is giving me pleasing photos, but there are three things that bother me:

1)    The AF speed is not very fast. It’s good for most shots, but I’ve missed some prime moments due to AF hunting.
2)    The HVL20S flash uses the battery power from the camera so the recycle times can get very slow. Not only that, it can only tilt upwards so you can’t shoot vertically if you want to bounce the light.
3)    Most lenses are too big. The kit lens is fine although still not that compact, but the 55-210mm and the 18-200mm are monsters.

Are these deal breakers? Not yet. While the AF speed is not great, it is miles better than the Fuji X100. I do miss the amazing X100 files as the 5N doesn’t quite match it, but it just got too frustrating using the Fuji. I’ve seen a lot of samples from the Fuji X10 and I’m not blown away. They are definitely good, but its smaller sensor is a noticeable step down from the 5N and X100.

Amid all this Nex-5N testing I added the FZ150 which has a generous 25-600mm zoom. The image quality is very, very good. Much better than the HX100V or HX9V. It’s still a compact cam sensor though so it has severe limits. The AF is actually very fast, maybe a hair faster than the 5N and the burst 5.5fps mode is wonderful as it autofocuses between each shot. I’m not sure how long term the FZ150 will be, but it’s a lot of fun to play with for now.

The surprise
I thought the new Nikon 1 system looked like a dud, but it does appear to deliver most of what it promises. What’s got me intrigued about the Nikon 1 system is that it addresses all three annoyances of the Nex-5N.

The AF is super fast with leading class object tracking, the V1’s external flash recycles fast AND can twist as well as tilt, and the lenses are much more compact with the exception of the super zoom.

I’ll be trying one out soon and will have to see whether the 5N, Nikon V1, or FZ150 stay.

The disappointment
Panasonic just announced the GX1, the true successor to the pro-friendly GF1. The features that are attractive to me are the wealth of buttons and dials, the fast AF speed, the nice grip, the promise of better high iso performance, and the availability of a kit with the newer compact X zoom lens.

The buzz kills are that early samples of the X zoom lens appear to have focus/stabilization problems, there is no 1080p 60p option, the rear LCD is still 480K and not tiltable, and it has no built-in EVF.

The lower spec video is probably my biggest grip. That said, it uses the same battery as the G3. I still have two spare batteries for that camera (knock-offs), so if Panasonic hasn’t locked them out in the GX1, that could be enough of an excuse to give the camera a try eventually.

Nikon V1 will get a shot

2011-11-07T16:12:00.000-08:00

I’m still shooting mainly with the Sony Nex-5N and lately, the Panasonic FZ150. The Nex-5N is giving me pleasing photos, but there are three things that bother me:

1) The AF speed is not very fast. It is good for most shots, but I’ve missed some prime moments due to AF hunting.

2) The HVL20S flash uses the battery power from the camera so the recycle times can get very slow. Not only that, it can only tilt upwards so you can’t shoot vertically if you want to bounce the light.

3) Most lenses are too big. The kit lens is fine although still not that compact, but the 55-210mm and the 18-200mm are monsters.

Are these deal breakers? Not yet. While the AF speed is not great, it is miles better than the Fuji X100. I do miss the amazing X100 files as the 5N doesn’t quite match it, but it just got too frustrating using the Fuji. I’ve seen a lot of samples from the Fuji X10 and I’m not blown away. They are definitely good, but its smaller sensor is a noticeable step down from the 5N and X100.

Amid all this Nex-5N testing I added the FZ150 which has a generous 25-600mm zoom. The image quality is very, very good. Much better than the HX100V or HX9V. It’s still a compact cam sensor though so it has severe limits. The AF is actually very fast, maybe a hair faster than the 5N and the burst 5.5fps mode is wonderful as it autofocuses between each shot. I’m not sure how long term the FZ150 will be, but it’s a lot of fun to play with for now.

The surprise

I thought the new Nikon 1 system looked like a dud, but it does appear to deliver most of what it promises. What’s got me intrigued about the Nikon 1 system is that it addresses all three annoyances of the Nex-5N. The AF is super fast with leading class object tracking, the V1’s external flash recycles fast AND can twist as well as tilt, and the lenses are much more compact with the exception of the super zoom. I’ll be trying one out soon and will have to see whether the 5N, Nikon V1, or FZ150 stay.

The disappointment

Panasonic just announced the GX1, the true successor to the pro-friendly GF1. The features that are attractive to me are the wealth of buttons and dials, the fast AF speed, the nice grip, the promise of better high iso performance, and the availability of a kit with the newer compact X zoom lens.

The buzz kills are that early samples of the X zoom lens appear to have focus/stabilization problems, there is no 1080p 60p option, the rear LCD is still 480K and not tiltable, and it has no built-in EVF. The lower spec video is probably my biggest grip. That said, it uses the same battery as the G3. I still have two spare batteries for that camera (knock-offs), so if Panasonic hasn’t locked them out in the GX1, that could be enough of an excuse to give the camera a try eventually.

A New Challenger Appears!

2011-10-05T13:59:00.000-07:00

Kind of ugly compared to the elegant X100 and X10, but I still want it.

Wow, as if answering my last post for the perfect travel camera, Fuji has just announced a 26x zoom fixed lens camera with a 2/3 sensor (the same as their upcoming X10)! It won't be available till early 2012, but I don't have any major travel plans this year anyway.

The camera has a ton of buttons and a hi-res EVF that enthusiasts demand.

There aren't many specs beyond that, but on paper the performance should be quite good for photos. If the video features are competitive and the price is right, this could be a seriously amazing camera.

Image Source: http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20111005_481838.html

Family/travel camera showdown

2011-09-22T13:26:00.000-07:00

I’ve decided I want my photoblog to concentrate on actual photos and the new home of gear ponderings will be here since it’s been a ghost town for a while.

With that out of the way, my latest thoughts concern the ideal family excursion camera. The key criteria for this category are in order of importance:

1.    Size/weight – Nothing too big or heavy
2.    Operational speed – Has to be very responsive so I can catch action as it happens
3.    Video quality – Minimum 720p @60p with stereo sound. 1080p 60p is even better
4.    Image quality – I’m willing to take a hit in this category, but not too much
5.    Reach – This only factors in when visiting places like the zoo or ball game where zooming is the only way to get close to the action
6.    EVF/OVF – For sunny days, this can be a lifesaver although not critical for some situations
7.    Discreetness – It certainly helps if the gear you wield is as unintimidating as possible, silent shutter is a plus

My two current cameras for this are the Sony HX9V and the Sony Nex-5N. The HX9V nails #1,3, 5, and 7. Operational speed is not great, image quality is average to below average, and it has no EVF.
The Nex-5N pretty scores points on everything except for reach and discreetness. I could add a 18-200mm lens, but then the size gets a bit out of hand. I also prefer the video of the HX9V over the 5N mostly because the smaller sensor keeps more things in focus which is important for family movies.

The new contenders

Panasonic FZ150 ($499, available October 2011)
Panasonic recently revealed the FZ150 superzoom camera. I owned the previous model, the FZ100 and was mostly pleased with it. I wasn’t surprised by noisy pics in low light since the cam had a small sensor, but the videos also suffered from excessive noise in lower light. On the other hand, the HX9V handles low light video like a superstar. Panasonic was aware of this problem and has reduced the megapixel count of the FZ150 from 14 to 12 which is great.

Initial photo tests on DPReview look extremely promising. The sensor of the FZ150 holds its own against larger sensor cameras quite well. The FZ100 nails 6 out of the 7 criteria points (it’s not very discreet looking, especially with the lens hood on). If the video quality of the FZ150 is up to snuff in low light, this can be the camera I’ve been waiting for.

The initial asking price of $499 is high for a camera in this range these days though. Also, the active steady shot feature of the HX9V is the top of its class so the FZ150 has its work cut out for it if it’s going to convince me that the large size of the FZ150 is worth ditching the compact HX9V.

Fujifilm X10 ($599-699, available November)The Fuji X100 is a great camera, but it didn’t suit my needs in this category. Its little brother is looking very interesting on paper. It’s smaller, has a nice zoom range, better video capability, and faster operational speed. It’s going to come down to how good the image and video quality is and if the camera is actually more responsive than the X100.

Sony Nex-7 ($1199 body, available November)The only way I would pick up the Nex-7 is if I sell BOTH my Nex-5N and Sony a850. That scenario is unlikely, no matter how heavy the a850 is. More high quality e-mount lenses may eventually force the issue, but that is quite a bit into the future based on the known Sony lens roadmap.

Nikon V1/J1 ($899/$649 available October)Just recently announced, Nikon’s first foray into compact mirror-less cameras is a bit of a head scratcher. On the plus side, the size of the camera and lenses is relatively compact and the shooting/video performance is looking interesting. The big sticking points are the small sensor and high price compared to its immediate competition. Time will tell if they catch on, but it’s not really in the running for me.

Panasonic GFX1 (Rumored)
The hottest rumor that comes from reliable source EOSHD is that Panasonic will unveil the GFX1 camera in November. If this follows suit of other Panny announcements, the camera will be available 2-3 months later. The most exciting aspect for me is that rangefinder styling with a built-in EVF. The G3 was great, but the body was dog ugly. For me to go back to micro four thirds, the performance would have to again take a good leap that the G3/GF3 made from previous generation in terms of photo quality. The video performance is already there in spades. Because of the vast lens selection, a well specified GFX1 would be the ultimate high performance compact travel camera whenever it’s released.

Olympus?I have a big soft spot for Olympus cameras as I’ve owned the E-P1, E-PL1, E-620, and the legendary E-1. As primarily a JPEG shooter, I love how the Oly cameras handle the processing of the image and deliver wonderful colors. The Sony cams can come close after some post processing though. I would give Olympus another chance if they were able to deliver a Pen-styled (read: rangefinder) camera with a built-in EVF and top notch video. I have no doubt they can do it. They would have to work on the video part though as the AVCHD implementation on the latest Pens is still not as good as on the Panasonic cams.

Third String

2011-08-08T14:03:00.001-07:00

Bit of a dry update spell here, but I have some fresh updates on my two other blogs on game outfits and photography. Enjoy!

Gaming For Japan

2011-03-18T10:17:00.000-07:00

Outright donations are fantastic, but it's also great when companies donate the profits from your purchase to the cause. Below are some of the companies I've found that are holding benefit sales for Japan Tsunami/Earthquake relief (image from the official SFIV blog):

Capcom and Sega iOS sales, Street Fighter IV, Sonic

Aksys Japan Benefit sale (100% of profits from all games in the Aksys store will go to relief)

Mac Games for Japan relief bundle - 15 games for $20, worth $200 retail

More gaming places that are taking donations

October Blu-ray Haul

2010-10-19T10:43:00.000-07:00

You won't often find all three of these movies in one collection unless you have tastes like mine.

Wow Project Sword/ Epic Citadel!

2010-09-02T10:21:00.000-07:00

The Apple product announcements didn't do much for me, but the software side was fantastic. iOS4.1 sounds great and Project Sword from Epic Games looked cool. What's even cooler is that you can download a playable tour of the game right now from the App Store. It's called Epic Citadel and there is a version for both the iPhone 4 and iPad. They both look fantastic although the iPad one gets the slight edge because of the large display.

Where is my River Monsters App?

2010-08-24T10:24:00.000-07:00

I love me some big fish and Jeremy Wade on the Discovery Channel show River Monsters delivers the biggest ones I've ever seen. Sure the structure of the show is predictable and Wade's melodramatic narration tries to squeeze every last ounce of suspense before the big catch reveal, but it works. It works damn well.

The second season is in full swing and promises Wade's biggest catch to date, a Sturgen.

Now all I need is a cool app where I can see on maps where all the catches were made, more info on the locations and fish, and of course a sweet fishing simulation with running commentary-like tips from Wade himself.

Chaos Ring for iPad

2010-08-13T10:07:00.000-07:00

After a succesful run on the iPhone, Square Enix has finally released Chaos Ring on the iPad. Yay! I'm very close to finishing StarCraft II so CR will get some playing time soon.

To commemorate the launch, other Square Enix titles are discounted for a limited time and Sliding Heroes is FREE!

What About Zinio?

2010-07-29T15:16:00.000-07:00

Zinio is not as flashy as the Wired or Popular Science apps. In fact, it’s not flashy at all, but the current selection of magazines and prices for single issues and subscriptions is far superior to any dedicated app at the moment.

So why is there no buzz on Zinio? Is it sales?

On the app side, I purchased an issue of Time, Wired, and Popular Science. For Zinio, I purchased multiple issues of iPhone Life, MacWorld, Amateur Photographer, T3, Rolling Stone, ESPN, and American Photo. The last two are subscriptions.

Maybe Zinio is keeping things quite on purpose to keep Apple’s hands out of their pockets. Time is certainly having quite a battle over profit sharing.

Threat of camera site fulfilled

2010-07-22T14:58:00.000-07:00

I mentioned a camera blog may be in the works and now it's happened! Check out Art vs. Gear when you have a chance HD Ninja friends.

iPhone 4

2010-06-25T11:13:00.001-07:00

It was a long day, but one filled with fun and great news. Here's how it played out:

6/24/2010

11:30AM

I'm thinking the early morning crowds should have thinned by now at the Bay Street Apple Store in Emeryville. It's nice to have positive thoughts isn't it? I scan the faces of the reserve line as I make my way to to back. There's a mixture of despair and excitement. It's quite cold out. I'm already thinking of bailing.

12:10PM

Wife joins me in line during her lunch break since she works close by. This is her phone after all. Mine got delivered in the morning. I'm thinking I'll have to stay in line no matter how long it takes because if mama is not happy, nobody is happy.

12:30PM

The Apple store folks bring out free chicken sandwiches from Bake Sale Betty's! Even though it's not warm, it still blows away the majority of chicken sandwiches I've had in my life. I probably would have wet myself if I ever ate one straight from the kitchen.

1:00PM

Wife leaves.

1:15PM

The guy in front of me hears me speaking Japanese on the phone to my mom who is watching my son at home ("I'm gonna be here a while" basically), and tells me the Japan is up 2-0 against Denmark! I totally forgot with all this iPhone line stuff! He's from South Korea so we start chatting soccer. Conversation erupt with folks in front and in back of us and it's getting fun and lively.

1:30PM

Two hours in we round the corner. Japan wins 3-1! We're in the round of 16!

3PM

We're very close to the front and honestly the last hour and a half kind of flew by because of the banter and perhaps my high from the Japan news.

3:30PM

iPhone 4 in hand and activated. Wife happy. It's not until I get home that I realize how tired I am.

Early Impressions

The more time I spend with the iPhone 4, the more it impresses. It's so fast, especially with apps that are designed for iOS4. My photo uploads are way quicker as well. The screen is a thing of beauty. Web browsing is gorgeous and speedy. Photos pop. The quality of snaps from the camera are great and it starts up very fast. Fast enough to capture those sudden photo ops.

More soon.

Bracing for iPhone 4

2010-06-18T07:21:00.000-07:00

Good news: My iPhone 4 will be delivered to my house. Yay!

Somewhat inconvenient news: My wife's is reserved at the local store for pick up because I could not get her order through before the deliveries rollled to July 2nd (and then quickly to July 14th).

I'm hoping things go smoothly as there will be two lines, one for reserves with a confirmation email and another for the unwashed masses who did not pound their keyboard and curse at AT&T's server all day June 15th until it yielded either an order or a real reserve.

I'm already having night sweats about waiting in that line. The 3 hour wait to get the 3G iPhone was not so bad, but the hype and technical problems surrounding iPhone 4 could result in post-apocalyptic levels of chaos. I'm also hesitant to bring my iPad to pass the time in line because it can be dangerous. Yes that was two months ago, but this happened last week.

Image above taken from Apple Insider.

DIY Beauty Dish

2010-05-18T15:14:00.000-07:00

There’s just something about the soft, glowy light from a beauty dish that is simply irresistible. I had to have one, but the most affordable one I could find was around $100+. Way too pricey for an item that wouldn’t be used very often so going the do-it-yourself route was the only way to go. I found this tutorial to be the most accessible.

Now that link above (and another link from within that article) provide most everything you need to know, but I ran into obstacles that forced me to alter things a bit.

First change, no epoxy glue. I’m not a fan of using it unless there is a project that absolutely requires it, especially with a super curious toddler in the house. I tried some super glue, which was a disaster.

The solution then was to use leftover screws from my “extra things from Ikea” bag. That worked like a charm and they were protectively covered with the little plastic studs you usually place inside of walls. It looked funky, but the paint would make it all nice in the end.

The convex mirror I found did not cover the entire end of the CD spindle so painting it was necessary. I decided on white since that’s what the inner dish would be colored. To make it neat, you must use some sort of painters tape. It’s a good idea to use keep the tape handy when painting the actual dish for a neat separation of the outer black and inner white.

I just have to add some Velcro to the back which will happen on the next run to Wal-mart or the 99 cent store, the supply HQ of affordable Velcro.

Here’s a quick snap with the beauty dish. The effect looks even better on people.

Sony NEX cameras

2010-05-11T14:13:00.000-07:00

Last night Sony officially unveiled the NEX5 and NEX3 cameras, their first shots in the semi-compact mirrorless camera market currently occupied by Olympus, Panasonic, and Samsung. It's been a hot segment for folks like myself who have longed for better quality photos, but in bodies smaller than traditional DSLRs. I currently own the Olympus E-PL1 and Panasonic GH1. Why two cameras? I'll get to that later. All photos on this page are from Impress Watch.

Above is the higher end NEX5 model with the "pancake" 16mm f2.8 lens. The camera will come in several colors with my favorite being the silver body since it matches nicely with the metal lenses.

This photo illustrates where things get complicated or should I say, less attractive. The whole point of mirrorless cameras is to have smaller and lighter things to carry around. While this combo above with the 18-55mm lens is indeed much more diminutive than a similarly capable DLSR, it's not exactly compact. Even though it looks unbalanced, I still kind of think it looks swell. This is mainly because I had a huge crush on F7 series (originally released 8-10 years ago), but didn't have a spare $1000 bill lying around.

The large lenses will also work a new line of camcorders. I prefer to use just one camera to take photos and video, but creates an interesting alternative should I be interested.

So why do I have two cameras? The E-PL1 takes AMAZING digital photos that come out looking great right out of the camera. You do not have to mess around with photoshop or anything like it for tweaks. Skin tones look pleasing, trees look lushly detailed, and the colors just pop in the most pleasing way possible without looking overcooked or unnatural. Unfortunately the 720p 30fps video is just ok.

On the opposite side, the GH1 takes some of the best looking video I've ever seen in super smooth 720p 60fps or I can go 1080p 24fps if I want that cinematic look. The photos can look as good as the E-PL1, but that is only if I take it in the RAW format and process them. This can take a while. Even then I like the color renditions better on the E-PL1 so I'm sort of stuck with both cameras for a while.

Will the NEX5 be able to replace either of my current cameras? I'll have to wait till late June or July when the camera is released to find out. Just looking at the specs and reading the initial impressions, it has a chance on the video side of things for sure. You can read more here.

Favorites

2010-04-21T06:10:00.000-07:00

The Olympus VF-2 for the E-P2 and E-PL1 cameras is AMAZING. The tech for electronic viewfinders has been getting better over the last year and the VF-2 is the best example yet. I prefer a built-in EVF like the SLR-styled Panasonic GH1 instead of an add-on, but the word is that they will start to appear in slimmer non-SLR-like cameras like the Pen series later this year.

It'll work just fine for now. This is what it looks like on the E-PL1 (yes I took the two pics above).

Operation Anchorage

My iPad Camera Connection kit shipped from Hong Kong a few days ago and is currently in Anchorage Alaska according to the tracking info. It’s exciting to be able to back up photos directly to the iPad, but I’m wondering if it will save them at full res or downsize them the way iPhoto does before syncing. It’s also the first accessory that is basically a USB plug for the iPad. It would be a huge missed opportunity if Apple and other app makers don't use it for things other than photo transfers. I’d really like the plug in my regular Mac keyboard please.

App update

If you haven’t purchased Magic Piano, do so now! It’s only a buck and it’s a great musical diversion for any time of the day. You’re not going to be playing like a normal piano and that’s the whole point. It’s about touching and making noises while being visually stimulated.

Guardian Eyewitness serves up one new stunning image a day along with details of the photo and photographic tips on how the shot was accomplished. Even if you care little for the technical details, the photos will mesmerize you for hours.

I finally got around to messing around with the Zinio magazine app and it’s a good first step. It’s certainly more comfortable to read magazines on the iPad vs a monitor. These are bare bones without the enhancements like the Time magazine app. The upside of less interactive elements is the cheaper prices. The magazine selection ranges from good to extremely random (Lots of Russian magazines for some reason). The Achilles heal of the thing is the speed of the reader. It takes a hair too long to navigate and sharpen each page.

iPad weekend impressions

2010-04-05T11:50:00.000-07:00

The iPad's initial battery charge has lasted about two and a half days of fairly heavy usage. I plugged it in to recharge now to finally put out some thoughts. I'm going to try to avoid the same impressions filling the net so will keep things focused on my niche interests.

iWork Pages on the iPad is awesome. I've been doing loose creative writing and some basic page layouts with ease. I got the Apple case and it's perfect for placing on your lap and typing away.

The ComiXology comic reader is a bit buggy, but it features almost all of the Walking Dead series. The first issue is free so give it a whirl. I think the latest issue is #70 and the last issue available on the app is #57 or so. Hopefully they get the rest up soon. It's very nice that they offer the first four collected volumes of Walking Dead though. A very economical way to get into the series. The Marvel app is the most polished of the official comic readers. It really just needs to add more recent comics and offer graphic novels and it'll be complete.

If you want to transfer files and read various documents like pdfs, the Goodreader is a massive steal at 99 cents. I actually bought Airshare HD because I used the iPhone version a ton, but in many ways the Goodreader is superior and costs $9 less. Man I could have saved some money!

I ended up purchasing Sketchbook Pro and half regret it. It is a very good drawing/painting program, but doing something really spiffy takes a ton of time. If there was some sort of stylus that worked with the iPad this program would totally rock.

Out of the four apps I actually paid money for, only Airshare was a total bust. Even if Goodreader didn't exist, Airshare has not been fully optimized for the iPad so there are some problems with the resolution of some documents and large file transfers.

Many old iPhone apps don't look great blown up on the iPad, but there are some exceptions. One is Monkey Island. It looks very very nice still. I never got around to playing it much on the iPhone, but this is the type of game that is aces on the iPad. Speaking of which there is also a Sam & Max game on here too that I will eventually check out.

iPad apps downloading

2010-04-02T19:52:00.000-07:00

The iPad should be here sometime tomorrow, till then I have to settle for downloading apps to iTunes and syncing later. All the free stuff is a no-brainer, but what to do about the ones that cost real world moneys?

There are quite a few drawing/painting choices already ranging from 99 cents up to 10 smackers. Sketchbook Pro looks like the best of the bunch and seems way feature packed for $7.99. There is an iPhone version that only very patient artists have thrived. The iPad one should be a lot more user friendly just based on screen size.

Photo retouching makes so much more sense on the iPad than the iPhone and Photogene looks pretty decent for $5.99. CameraBag is a little less flashy looking with an asking price of $2.99. This is going to be a super competitive market so it's going to be worth waiting just a while longer for a better selection.

I already bought MLB at Bat 2010 for the iPhone so it's a tough sell for me to shell out another $15 for the big brother. Might wait till the all-star game when the app usually drops closer the $5.

At $12.99, Command and Conquer Red Alert would be the highest priced app I'm considering. Looks snazzy though.

I was a long time subscriber to Time magazine and would gladly do so again on the iPad, but $5 a pop seems way too much. Can't tell from the description if that covers the entire month of April (4 issues) or just this week. I'll give it a chance if it's the whole month.

I'm a huge Geometry Wars fan so I'm totally jumping on this if the iPad version controls are right. $10 is the same price I paid for the full fledged Xbox live version so it would have to control very well indeed.

More soon!

iPad has shipped...from China!

2010-03-29T09:49:00.000-07:00

I was super surprised to see a shipment email from Apple this morning that the iPad is on its way! I looked up the tracking and it's shipping from China, same as my Macbook Pro from a while back. Is is possible this will get here before the Saturday release? I doubt it. Pretty sure all deliveries will be held for Saturday, just as a Harry Potter book or anything like it is locked up pre-official release.

Excited!

Great timing

2010-03-23T06:38:00.000-07:00

I sold off my DSi this past friday since I barely use it and would probably get the DSi XL somewhere down the road, but the announcement of the 3DS makes my decision seem prescient.

Oh and the iPad is only a week and half away!

5:30AM. iPad. Crazy.

2010-03-12T07:45:00.000-08:00

The Apple iPad was offered for pre-order at 5:30AM Pacific time today. I was at my computer hitting refresh on the Apple store and bought one. Then I went back to sleep. I feel silly, but I didn’t even need my alarm as I woke up several times during the night. Of course all that was unnecessary since several hours later it is still available for order.

On a related note, I got to play around more with the DSi XL today. For games like Metroid Pinball, the larger screen is really great. For most others it wasn’t quite as dramatic. I definitely won’t be picking one of these up anytime soon or perhaps at all unless someone starts a very good trade-in program for my current DSi.

The Schedule

2010-02-16T06:08:00.000-08:00

Here's a quick look at what I've played so far in 2010 in the order played:

Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Wii), Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360), Fallout 3: Broken Steel DLC (Xbox 360)

And the plan from now till as far as I've thought about:

Bayonetta (Xbox 360), Heavy Rain (PS3), Yakuza 2 (PS2), Yakuza 3 (PS3), God of War III (PS3), Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360), Resident Evil 5 Gold (PS3 or maybe Xbox 360, haven't decided).

Nothing is really for sure beyond Bayonetta and Heavy Rain though. Just thinking out loud.