HarryJerry.com » Tech

Review: The IT Depot

Harry — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:14:39 +0000

I’m a big fan of e-commerce. Why shouldn’t anyone be? Sit at home, order and get stuff at your doorstep. Add to that the discounts and you’ve got a pretty good reason to shop online. But when it comes to buying gadgets or technology related stuff online it gets a little painful at times. For one, there’s no decent online store based in India with a pan India presence and the few that exist cost a bomb, have a shitty interface or don’t have a large stock. Ebay is a solution and one can mostly find a good deal but at times when you need something specific it may not be listed or is priced at MRP.

So I’m always in this quest for an online tech store in India that just works. It led me to The IT Depot. It seemed like a decent enough online tech store to me, quite an amazing stock, decent pricing and a good enough user interface. What grabbed my eye balls was their shipping policy. They prefer to ship via Speed Post. Now that’s weird. I decided to dig a little further and found they operate offline stores in Chennai (I thought they knew courier services were invented by now).

I looked up a few other stores for the Logitech earphones I wanted to buy but no luck. Eventually I decided to give it a try. They had a ready stock for the earphones I wanted and the price was decent. On checking out the shipping page explained an extra charge for shipment via courier (there was no other option). Now that made me smile and I quickly finished with the payment. Everything done, it seemed like a breeze and I was happy I finally found a great online tech store.

The surprise party started with the next day when I received an e-mail informing me that my package has been shipped via Speed Post. Now I paid for courier so how could they ship it through Speed Post? I decided to shoot them an e-mail today (still waiting on a response for that). The package arrived today though. I don’t have anything against the Indian Postal Department but when it comes to e-commerce I’d prefer courier services for their customer care and trust. Yes I do not trust the Speed Post.

Anyways no grudge against The IT Depot but they must mention on the checkout that no matter if you choose courier they’ll send your package via Speed Post only. On the whole I’d recommend them in case you cannot find anything on Ebay and hold the patience to trust Speed Post.

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How do you treat your customers?

Harry — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:15:27 +0000

Well the answer to this question would most probably be – pretty well. So let me rephrase that question for you. How do you treat your regular customers? Same. Now, how do you treat your regular customers who haven’t bought anything from you for some time now? Now you want to wonder why and how that ever happened? They were your regular customers, they were satisfied customers and all of a sudden they’re not buying from you. Did they move to another provider?

That’s where smart marketing comes in. Your customers may have gone asleep all this time. Chances of them moving to another provider may still be possible but it’ll be more faster for them to switch back than to adjust to a stranger. My advice would be to bring them closer, let them know that you care about them or the best – give them a reason to come back.

I have been a loyal BookMyShow customer for a long time now. I’ve always stood by their service no matter what and it has given me some neat experiences that I don’t even mind a rare glitch while booking movie tickets or a high convenience charge. If I am getting what I want and with a cool interface that’s like crossing an empty street then why not? It’s the best way to book your movie tickets sitting at home. My favorite part of online booking is that you get to choose your seats. Add to that an array of easy to use payment options, regular offers and gift certificates, you’ve got a killer product.

I noticed I haven’t been able to go out for a movie lately all thanks to the super hectic schedule I put myself into. Seems like the smart folks at BookMyShow were more curious to know why customers like me weren’t booking tickets with them. Had I moved? No. Had I been sleeping? In a way. So they sent me a 50 bucks coupon for a discount the next time I book a movie ticket online with them. The end result? I’m planning to book my movie tickets online with BookMyShow for this weekend just so I can use the coupon. Everyone wins eh?

My point is not that BookMyShow is the best thing out there. My point is not that companies should take their customers for suckers at discount coupons. It just that when you’re good to your customers and offer them a chance to return or come back, it will give your customers more reasons to stick to you. I understand there may be plenty of other booking sites likes this online or there may be sites operated by multiplexes themselves (I hate PVR’s online booking system) but here the overall experience matters. It’s got the juice you need so why not?!

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Game Review : Disney Interactive Studios’ SPLIT SECOND

Prabjot — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 18:04:53 +0000

Split Second is an exciting arcade racing game developed by Black Rock Studio(creators of the off-road racer, PURE). It packs in the best of environments and graphics with some fine background score. The game is set within a reality television show(something reminds me of the Jason Statham movie, Death Race, only here prisoners are not forced to kill each other!). You can compete in a variety of game modes, single player, online and LAN as well as split/screen play, which I think is cool given not many racing games offer that today.

Split second lets you play 'Split screen'!

The first impression:

Nice! Split Second adds to the thrills which other racing games lack. The devastating ‘powerplays’, detonating power plant towers, collapsing bridges and explosive drums (being thrown from behind a truck) and missiles from choppers add to the chills. Some tracks allow you and your opponents to change the route entirely, so you can expect something new when continuing for the next lap. You can unlock tracks as you go along completing the ‘episodes’ in the season championship and also win new cars as you earn more ‘credits’.

Keep your eyes on the road, or else...

Gameplay and Graphics:

The gameplay is quiet good. The cars respond well to the throttle and when they bump into objects and other cars. It is much easier to control the cars using a gamepad rather than a keyboard, and fun too. The drafting requires a bit of practice and you’ll need to maintain a good driving line for cornering easily and rapidly. Different cars behave differently while drafting. So choose a car that suits the event best. The detailed world environment looks brilliant and the cars on offer look great too. The night racing can be a bit ditchy, I must have crashed at least 2-3 times before completing my first night race.

Select the car that suits the event best!

Verdict:

The best thing I like about this game is that you don’t need to start all over again if your car crashes or if an opponent wrecks your car. You get to continue from the same instance, only to see that some of your opponents have overtaken you! But don’t feel let down if you see yourself placed at the last position, you can always get back by using the powerplays, Split Second offers, that trigger explosive, devastating events lined throughout the track. This game will certainly keep you hooked to the wheel with great visuals and sound, and ofcourse the surprises thrown at you. Should you buy it? Definitely yes, if you are willing to spend over a thousand bucks!

Surprise surprise!

System Requirements(Minimum/Recommended):
OS: Windows XP (SP3) / Windows Vista (SP2) / Windows 7
CPU: Intel Pentium D at 3.0 Ghz or equivalent AMD/Intel Core 2 Duo at 3.0 Ghz or AMD Athlon (64 X2) 2.4 Ghz or better
RAM: 1 GB RAM (XP) or 1.5 GB RAM (Windows 7 / Vista) / 2 GB(Windows Vista/7)
HDD: 6.5 GB free disk space
Graphics: 256 MB/ 512 MB Graphics Memory or better
Sound Card: DirectX 9 Compatible
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Supported Graphics Card: nVidia GeForce 7600 or ATI Radeon X1600 or better

*This game was tested with:
- nVidea GeForce 7600 GS(256 MB)
- Core 2 Duo(1.86 GHz)
- 1 GB RAM
- Windows 7(Ultimate)

The game worked just fine for me at low resolution and medium details, though it was slow with higher detail levels and a larger resolution. (PS: Download the Demo first to check if your system supports the game, if you are apprehensive that is)

GAME PUBLISHER:
Disney Interactive Studios
DEVELOPER:
Black Rock Studio
GENRE:
Action-Arcade Racing
RELEASE DATE:
May 18th, 2010
ESRB RATING:
E10+
GAME PLATFORM:
Xbox 360®, PLAYSTATION®3, PC

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Conventional Media v/s Digital Media

Harry — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 16:42:55 +0000

No one could easily predict how one day digital media could give conventional media a run for it’s money. It’s the same way how no one predicted how one GUI based operating system, simple to use and more useful than anything else would take over the computing world in 1995 (yes of course Windows 95). Digital media or what it could be broadly referred to as, new media, has done the same thing.

Newspapers and magazine houses were in fact so happy with Internet spreading all over that they couldn’t spare time to give it a thought about their future. They understood it could serve as a medium to extract more orders easily and to spread the word to a global audience. No one really understood it’s real potential until a short while ago.

Now things started turning ugly for the conventional media. People found another unbiased, rich and contextual form of news in the form of blogs. I’ve always mentioned that my own reading habits had been spoiled because of blogs (not that I’m complaining here!). Not only blogs but other advancements in the social media scene had started issuing warning messages to conventional media. It was enough to raise an SOS.

Now that everyone understands and respects the digital media, it only makes sense for conventional media to bridge the digital divide and use digital media to it’s advantage. Indeed platforms like Apple’s iPad and Amazon Kindle have provided a fresh perspective to how conventional media can still survive, it’s still a long way to go before we see the interactivity we are getting used to.

Enough said, time to head back to the RSS reader.

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Are you a Mac or a PC?

Harry — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 18:07:47 +0000

A school going boy walks up to his father and tells him that he finds his homework utterly boring. His father stops his work and sits down with his son. He asked his son, ‘are you going to be a PC all your life or are you going to work hard to become a Mac one day?’

No wonder the kid understood what his father meant. Five years down the line and not only this guy grew up to become a Mac, he’s got a great job, a loving girlfriend, a big house and he drives around in a SUV. Ask him if he still remembers his father’s advice and his eyes lighten up. He can recount the day as if it was just yesterday.

No I am not reviving platform wars all over again and neither am I mocking any technology company. My simple point is that for some things in life we will have to walk that extra mile to grab it. I’m personally of the opinion that one doesn’t need to run behind money, not primarily at least. If you do a good job money will automatically somehow follow. It may not always end up like that but the satisfaction of doing a great job shouldn’t get crushed under heavy pay checks.

Money is our ultimate motive for working on something I agree with that. All I’m saying is that money shouldn’t be the primary goal here. I keep telling myself not to run behind money and then I see a Mac. I salivate at the very moment. All of a sudden I ask myself why the heck can’t I afford one?

The only thing is we all are a PC at some point or the other because we’re merely at the first step of the ladder. The moment we get to the top and have enough money, we become Macs in no time. So are you a Mac or a PC?

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Get Free 2 Mbps Speed on Demand from Airtel Broadband

Harry — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:55:31 +0000

Airtel broadband is offering free 2 Mbps upgrade via Speed on Demand to it’s subscribers. The offer is open to everyone who is currently a subscriber to Airtel broadband services except for MP & Chhattisgarh. The free speed on demand offer from Airtel broadband promises 15 hours of 2 Mbps upgrade worth Rs. 1125 over a period of next five months.

To avail this free offer users simply have to register on Airtel broadband’s site here. The offer, as per the site, will be activated after 7 days from registration. The only possible explanations that can be derived from such a generous offer from Airtel could be either marketing strategies to promote Airtel broadband’s Speed on Demand service which has not many followers or Airtel might be trying to spoil us to suck us into upgrading to 2 Mbps ‘impatience plans’.

I’m hoping Airtel doesn’t make this a billing hassle in the long run. Like you might end up paying a huge bill in case you don’t realize the free cap on the speed on demand you might be paying an inflated bill at the end of the month. In case you’re too smart for that, go ahead and register here. Make the most of it.

[Thanks to Ankur and Sukhbir for the tip]

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Decoded: Letter From Apple on iPhone 4 Reception Issues

Harry — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 17:47:42 +0000

Apple has posted a letter amidst accusations coming from all over on reception issues being faced by iPhone 4 users. For all those of you who’re not smart enough here is the decoded version.

Dude you guys are talking about iPhone 4! You know we’ve sold like zillions of those. Almost everyone has one and those who don’t dream of owning one some day. You’ve got to hold the phone correctly dude be it Nokia, BlackBerry or the Droid. No stupid it doesn’t make any difference but it’s just that we had to write something smart. And you were the guys whose jaws dropped in shock and awe while Steve announced the new iPhone 4′s innovative antennae design. Now your signals screw you so you want to blame us eh?

A lot of imaginary people have sent us spam about how their iPhone 4 has a rocking reception. It’s great even when they’re underground. They claim they’ve been teasing their iPhone 3GS counterparts about the awesome reception they get with the fourth generation iPhone.

So where the heck is the problem?

Well we have found ourselves dumbfounded after some experiments at our test labs. We pondered on how we could cover up this whole stupid antennae issue and it seems a smart ass MIT graduate came out with a super cool solution.

So we’ve decided to adopt another smart ass idea from AT&T on displaying signal. Now we’re going to make a tiny little software upgrade on the iOS (yeah yeah it’ll be a free one, stop whining) that will make those signal bars shiny good. Well that’s what you asked for isn’t it?

Also we’d like Gruber-holics to kindly shut up and enjoy their much awaited super smartphone of the year quietly. You’ve had enough of page views to your delight. It’s time to find a new problem to spit at us.

And if you’re still feeling cheated you can throw that iPhone 4 back at us within 30 days of your purchase and we won’t mind returning your entire money back. We’ve got plenty of people dying to get one.

So until Adobe does something really nasty don’t wake us up. It’s high time we went back to sleep in our penthouses we bought with all that iMoney.

Love

Apple

[This is not an official letter from Apple. It's just a piece of satire. The full official letter from Apple is here.]

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The Social Network – A Movie on Facebook

Harry — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 17:42:32 +0000

Sony Pictures has released the first poster for their upcoming comedy based on the social networking giant Facebook. The movie is titled ‘The Social Network’. The Social Network is based on how Facebook was founded by Mark Zukerberg. The movie’s posters showcases Jesse Eisenberg as Mark.

The film will hit movie theaters this October and is anticipated the be an interesting one. At least for all geeks like us. Not that Mark Zukerberg is popular for all the right reasons but since the movie is tagged as a comedy it’ll be interesting too see some Zukerberg jokes.

The poster released by Sony Pictures says, ‘ You don’t get to 500 million friends without making enemies’. Of course it refers to the 500 million users on Facebook. The film also stars Justin Timberlake.

One movie to watch out for in 2010!

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Say Hello to My Little Friend – The New Xbox 360!

Harry — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 20:59:57 +0000

It’s been an awesome day for gaming enthusiasts all over. Microsoft has finally announced the much awaited Xbox 360 slim gaming console at E3 today. Microsoft calls it ‘the new’ Xbox 360 console instead of the expected Xbox 360 slim tag. It appears slim indeed and it’s pretty slick, all black and comes with built-in WiFi. The new Xbox 360 is prices at $299 and it’s available right away in the US. The old Elite model will remain at $249 while the Xbox 360 Arcade will drop to $149.

The new Xbox features touch sensitive buttons, a glossy black design, 250 GB Hard drvie, 802.11n WiFi and Microsoft claims their new Xbox 360 is really really silent! What else does a man need? Everyone at the event got their new Xbox 360 shipped today while for you guys out there it’s being shipped to retailers right now and should be available this week itself.

With the new Xbox 360 and Kinect announced today at E3, Microsoft has set it’s eyes on the gaming industry with a clear cut strategy. What shall follow until Kinect hits the stores by November shall be extensive online/offline campaigns to promote these products and we shall see some more exciting demos and videos of the new games to come.

Here’s a fact sheet you might wanna go through:

Cheers to Microsoft!

Factsheet: Engadget

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Project Natal is Christened Microsoft Kinect!

Harry — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:44:11 +0000

It’s one step closer guys! Microsoft has named Project Natal as Kinect. Kinect for Xbox 360 is soon coming to rock your world of gaming with controller-free environment. Microsot Kinect for Xbox 360 may be available as soon as November this year. Now that’s not soon enough for gaming enthusiasts but then you’ll have it by Christmas guys!

Microsoft reealed the Kinect last night at an event before the official start of E3. Some of the games demoed during the announcement included – Star Wars, Tiger petting (yeah!). Apart from this Microsoft also showed off a video chat application for Kinect. There were Wii-like sports games as well like volleyball and soccer.

Microsoft did not reveal two most important specs here – price and date. Still Microsoft’s UK website seemed to have given a hint of a November release. Kinect looks exactly the same as it looked during the Project Natal announcement. There were rumors regarding change in form factor to match it with the slimmer version of Xbox 360.

With everything just in place for Microsoft’s Kinect it’s going to be interesting to see how they set the price for Kinect. In my opinion a sub $150 could do wonders. Or if Microsoft is bold enough may be even a sub $100 price for bulk selling and keeping a smaller margin for profits. We have our eyes open guys! Bring it on…

Update: Seems like someone at GameStop was in a bit of hurry. They had mistakingly published the Kinect for Xbox 360 product page on their website listing the price as $150. So there you have it, Kinect will be priced at $150. I still feel the sub $100 price was a perfect must-buy for this fall.

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