As sad as it might sound, the artsyHANDS team itself did not have any post ready for Independence Day. But lo and behold! Farrukh Zafar of FarrukhUNPLUGGED.com came up to save the day!

(photo source: Ilyas Ansari)

Crescent Nation’s Adversity Times

With the timers on the bomb, we’ll synchronize our watches,
Till every terrorist’s drooling plan, in our fist scotches

Five ants are seen stuck under, the famous American dime,
Pakhtun, Punjabi, Sindhi, Gilgiti, Balochi – each ant a paradigm

If all five united, we can turn the dime with time,
Till instead of blasts we get to hear the nation’s blissful chime.

- Farrukh Zafar (@fariZafar)

The message is simple. The more we feel increasing loads on our backs, the stronger as a consequence, our backs become. Embrace the pain and live up to the ask, Pakistanis. There’s a good time coming, InshaAllah.

NOTE: Please spread the love by sharing this post on Facebook/Twitter! Happy Independence!

Moblink invited people from the blogger’s community yesterday (30th July, 2010) to the Mall of Lahore for the launching of their first non-Blackberry smartphone: the Motorola Milestone. The event was deemed as a success by the bloggers who attended the meetup (including yours truly). The community appreciated Mobilink and Google Pakistan’s efforts in finally bringing an Android smartphone to the local market.

Read the rest of the post after the jump.

NOTE: This post was supposed to be published at ProPakistani.PK. But they never got around to it. I figured it HAD to be published somewhere. Y’know, can’t let a nicely written article go to waste. So here it is, in its entirety, my two cents on the Motorola Milestone launch event.

—-

Author Bio

Awais Imran is a 17 year old writer cum blogger at humor-based technology blog WINARS and artsyHANDS. He is currently working as a freelance writer for technology-based websites. You can follow him on Twitter or contact via email.

—-

The event was set at The Sunset Boulevard, Mall of Lahore. It started at around 4:15PM. At the start, The host announced a Facebook-based competition where you had get maximum number of comments to win an actual Motorola Milestone. Saad Hamid (of Sizlopedia fame) racked up almost 700 comments but was beaten by someone else (whose name I can’t recall at the moment). Two other giveaways were also held in which the prize(s) were awesome Google Dolls.

Afterwards, Jehan Ara (President of P@SHA) spoke a little about software and mobile apps. Later, representatives from Google, Mobilink and Motorola came on stage to talk about the Milestone’s features and achievements.

Which is what I’ll myself be talking about in this post.

An Outdated Phone

FACT: The Milestone (aka DROID) was released 9 months ago in the United States. It is, by now, pretty much an outdated handset in terms of its slow processor and old display technology. So it comes as a disappointment that we’re seeing this release in Pakistan now. And let me remind you: The DROID 2 is just around the corner!

Now although the phone has received great acclaim from websites like Gizmodo and Engadget for its then eye-popping display, design and overall features… the fact remains: it is old! It is antiquated!

Much better, stronger Android handsets such as the Droid Incredible, HTC Desire, Nexus One etc have entered the international market after the Milestone.

This was discussed in detail during the conference. An attendee asked the speakers as to why an old phone is being released now. The speaker, in return, made an excellent point by saying that this was the first official Android release in Pakistan and that there are many legalities and formalities involved in it. He also pointed out that newer phones will be released near to their international release dates as Moblink strengthens its partnership with Google and makers of other Android-based handset manufacturers.

A Step In The Right Direction

But all things considered, the introduction of the Milestone is still a great achievement on Mobilink’s side. Till now, all us Pakistanis got from network carriers were Blackberries. But now, with the Milestone, we have our first Android network-carried handset in Pakistan!

Soon enough, we’ll see similar offerings from Telenor, ZONG, Ufone and Warid. And this only means thing: the customer wins!

So, hey Moblink, Motorola and Google Pakistan! From us bloggers here in Pakistan: job well done!!

P.S I do wish that we start having subsidized handsets in Pakistan though. Shelling out Rs. 40,000 (and in most cases: Rs. 60,000+) on a cell phone is not possible for most people here. However in America, you can get the iPhone 4 16GB for Rs. 17,000 (200$) with a 2 year old contract which binds you to use a specific cellular network.

Features

Motorola Milestone will be sold by Mobilink for Rs. 38,000 ($450). Features are as follows:

• Input: 3.7″ high-resolution 854×480 capacitative TFT touchscreen display (with other sensors) and sliding QWERTY keyboard
• Operating System: Google Android 2.1
• Memory: 512MB built-in. Expandable up to 32GB
• Camera: 5.0 megapixel with 720×480 @30fps video recording, geotagging, dual LED flash and autofocus
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi (802.11b/g), Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, A-GPS, USB Micro-B

photos source: Badar Khushnood and Wikipedia.

Hah! I knew you’d guys would do this… *coughirregularpostscough*

Sigh. You are right. But this was inevitable, my dear reader. In life, you gotta prioritize shit: I will not be able to blog this year. The studies are harder than what was the case last year. See what I did there? I gave preference to studies over blogging. Haye! I’m so mature. -_-

Studies Be Hard

So what’s the reason, O artsy-admin? Why are you really going away?

Sigh (again). Contrary to what my teachers had been telling me, my HSSC-II studies are hard. Not just hard hard, but hard hard. The course is lengthier and very different from what we were studying last year. And it is real-taxing that way.

Balance Blogging And Studying?

“So why not balance studies and blogging?”, asked Hamad Dar (Guru-dude: He’s the reason I’m blogging today). My answer was rather simple, “Do0d lolz, I e!daa studehh or blaag. Kn’t d0 bOtHHH @ da same tym lolx…!!

I’ve thought a lot about this: do I blog or do I study? Or do I balance both? Blogging is probably more productive than studying the shitty course that we have, but it is what is required of me most at this stage of life (lolz) to become a bara aadmi.

And readers might say, “But you never updated artsy all that regularly to begin with!”

That’s true janaab. But that’s how it is with personal-experiences based blog. I have to have personal experiences in order to blog about them and truth be told: I am out of such experiences for now.

I’ll Make You An Offer You Can’t Refuse

So here’s the deal: I put off blogging for a year. Come back next year in July harder than ever and be a true WINAR blogger. Deal? (I’m hoping you’ll say yes)

Until then, I suggest you to get off the computer and take a walk. -

You’re free to look around the site till July ’11.

Salaam!

Your artsy-admin,

Waisybabu

Apple is known for its minimalistic yet striking designs. Just look at the iMac, iPhone, iPod and iPad and you’ll be able to observe a general theme of simplicity and practicality sensed across all products. These are the workings of Jonathan Ive, Senior VP Industrial Design at Apple.

What is surprising, though, is the fact that Apple incorporates its iconic design into all of its retail Apple Stores and this makes for some rather awe-inspiring buildings.

Enlisted after the jump, are some of the most beautiful Apple Stores from around the world. I hope you enjoy the list

Read it here (from artsyHANDS’ sister site: WINARS)

The internet is home to some pretty fun stuff. All it takes is a visit to sites like 9gag, StumbleUpon, Cracked, Digg, Dorkly to leave you laughing in stitches. I personally love 9gag and StumbleUpon, I visit them whenever I feel I have nothing else to do (which happens quite a lot these days *coughsummervacationscough*).

Shown in the link below, for your pleasure, are just some of the amazing images I found while stumbling my way through the internet. Be sure to comment on the photos and ‘like’ them (so we know that you actually went through them [and that they weren't uploaded in vain]).

See Album Here!

Short films… well, tend to be short. But they make up for their shortness by being more what one might call: punchy. Featured below is a short film by Saad Altaf and Usman Ahmed (concept by Saad Altaf) which presents, to the viewer, the effect of telecommunication advances in the country. Sure, what you’re about to watch in the film isn’t something you get to see daily, but the premise here is metaphorical. And quite moving!

‘Missed Call’ – a must watch!

If you liked it, it would be awesome if you could leave a comment and share the post! Thanks!

Apple just announced the latest iteration of their smartphone: the iPhone 4. And it is, as expected, much superior to the iPhone 3G and 3GS. Steve Jobs is on stage talking about it as this is being typed. Now of course, he has already announced the all-new design, the microSIM only format (not available in Pakistan), the new so-called “retina display”, a faster processor, a better battery, a gyroscope for better motion-sensing, a much better camera, inclusion of the iBook Store and iAd advertisement system and blah blah blippity blah blah that you can read about here or here or here.

It’s going to cost well over 900$ in Pakistan. So what is there to rejoice about?

You’ll have to read on ahead for that!

Doesn’t Cut It

In this man’s humble opinion: the iPhone is one of the best smartphones in the market BUT for your average upper-middle-class Pakistani, it just doesn’t cut it for a very simple reason: It is super expensive. Last time I checked, the iPhone 3GS retailed at one of the local mobile stores for 80,000Rs. That’s a whopping 930$. Afforable? Nay.

And in that lies the main problem with the iPhone. It’s a very VERY nice phone, but for 930$ even with such an advanced OS and hundred thousand apps, it’s just not worth it. The more basic features of the iPhone: WiFi for browsing, music and video playback, camera, GPS etc can be easily be gotten on a 450$ Nokia E72. You won’t be getting the epic touchscreen or the mazaydaar iPhone OS 4, but do you really need it? No you don’t. The iPhone is more of a status symbol here in Pakland than anything else.

I could write a book on this topic, but I won’t. Cause you already get it. Moving on.

Good News

For those who are on a comparatively tight budget and still want an iPhone, there is good news to be heard. Apple, in lieu of the iPhone 4 announcement, has discontinued the iPhone 3G.

Now that ain’t such a bad thing. Because what this will do is: the instant iPhone 4 reaches Pakistani markets, the iPhone 3G will go down in price harder than ever. Expect it to cost less than 300$ (equivalent to 25,000Rs.). What that means is that people like yours truly can realistically think of saving up money to get their hands on an iPhone.

That’s that.

iPhone 4 Announced!

As mentioned earlier in the post, iPhone 4 has the following new features:

• New design
• Vastly superior Retina Display (highest resolution on a smartphone),
• Faster processor
• Better battery
• Inclusion of a gyroscope for better motion-sensing
• A much better camera (with LED Flash, back-lit sensor and 5 megapixels)
• Inclusion of the iBook Store for reading books on your iPod Touch or iPhone
• iAd advertisement system (this is interesting for developers only)

If you want more details, check out Apple’s official iPhone 4 website. And if you’re in for some humor, you have to see this!

I had a weird dream yesterday. I started in a forest where a fat merchant was having a yard sale. From the clothes, I knew the dream took place in medieval times. As I was looking through the items for sale I came across a small cat cage. In the cage, there was a dirty grey angel with a missing wing. The angel was about my size, but it was stuffed in the cat cage like in cartoons.

For some reason, I needed the one winged angel, so I used the oldest trick in the book. I said to the merchant, “Look over there”. While he was busy looking over there, I picked up the cage, jumped on my horse and rode away.

Read on ahead. It gets weirder!

Weird Dream Gets Weirder

When it was safe, I stopped and asked the caged angel, “If I release you, do you promise not to take bear?” I had meant to ask the angel not to run away. This was my mind’s attempt at recreating old English. My subconscious is no good at making up medieval English. The angel shuffled in his cage a little. I took this to be a yes. I opened the cage and he floated out in front of me.

The first thing I noticed was that the angel was really dirty. Later, I also noticed that the angel was in his pajamas. I needed the angel to assist me in a war against an unnamed enemy. The angel told me it could duplicate any of the enemies units. It could become a tank and place itself strategically on any part of the battlefield. A tank in medieval times would be very useful.

The next thing I knew, I was on facebook. The angel had added all of my friends and was commenting on their profiles. I had the chance to read a few. They were all really stupid. Most of it was complete gibberish. There were comments like, ‘he needs to partake in retard pills’. Even the angel’s display picture was stupid. He still hadn’t taken a bath and was still in his pajamas. Ultimately, the angel ended up embarrassing himself.

I promised myself I would never again eat the food they serve in trains.