Update : Smart Bro and CDR King Wifi Router

Last week, Smart Broadband's signal was up-and-down. I would get over 1 mbps one minute, then completely lose signal the next minute. Because the internet is my second office, I require at least a moderate speed, but more importantly, a very stable internet signal. So you can imagine the mental aggravation of this whole situation was. And so every time I would lose signal, I 'd hard reboot my poor over-a -year-old 3G Wireless-N Broadband Router I bought at CDR-King last year for 1,400.00 Php.

After a whole afternoon of abuse, basically hard rebooting every 15 minutes or so, the CDR King wifi router finally gave up. I'm sure if I bring the thing to the store it can still be resurrected from it's current "factory reset" status, but then again, this is a symptom that the router has no longer much time to live. And that it would be too much hassle from hereon out.

Lucky for me, I know a friend who has upgraded his own internet service and as a result now owns a spare Smart Bro post-paid wifi router. And he let me borrow the thing. I just changed the post paid sim card with my own prepaid sim card, and that's it. The old post-paid Smart Bro wifi router is now converted to a prepaid wifi router. The service is still Smart. And as of last night, the signal is still intermittent. But for now, I have internet.

If Smart's service remains like this for the rest of the year however, I've already decided to get another internet service provider. I'm seriously considering BayanTel as I only need around 500 kbps -- BayanTel is promising "up to 768 kbps" for 899 Php monthly fee. I am willing to pay that price for a real 500 kbps or around 2/3 of that promise. I hope this is not another promise of  "up to 2 mbps", when actually, you'd be lucky to hit 300 kbps on a constant basis, which is what Smart Bro is really about -- at least the past two months or so.

No excuses Smart, we are paying you the premium price so it is only right that we expect that you give us a premium service. I would've been happy if you had delivered on even just half of that promise. Although it is technically not lying, less than 500 kbps should never be advertised as "up to 2 mbps." That's just wrong.

The former post-paid wifi router converted to pre-paid. Yes, it sits on top of my washing machine. And yes that is not the original antennae, my friend lost the original also the stand. But over-all the router is doing very well. And as of 10 am today, looks like Smart is going to give out a good signal today. But with Smart, you never know. It has been like that for about 2 months now.

Text overcharging

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), the government agency tasked to regulate the telecommunications industry in the Philippines has set the price ceiling of one text message sent in the Philippines at 0.80 Php since late last year (2011). All telecommunications companies, specifically Smart Communications, Globe Telecoms, and Sun Cellular, are ordered to follow this price ceiling. But to this day, this order has been ignored. As a consequence the NTC is now ordering that a refund be given to the consumers.

I will not go into the boring details of how the NTC came up with the price of 0.80 Php per text, which I think is still too expensive by the way, let me just say that the NTC is the government regulatory body. How dare these telecom companies ignore an order by the government. These companies are above and beyond the control of government?

Globe came up with a statement in the media that basically argued that the telecoms industry is a "free market therefore they are free to set whatever price they want". Okay Globe, you have a point. It is indeed a free market. And you have the right to set the price as high as you want. But oh wait, you are using the airspace in the Philippines? That belongs to the state -- the people if you will. Applying the same free market principle on you, we, the, the people, have decided to raise your rent of that airspace by 1,000 percent. Take it or leave it. You will not be missed.

As for the NTC, if you can not regulate these companies, then you have ceased being relevant. How dare you take your salaries when you can not do your job? You have only one job. If you can not do it, then please abolish yourselves and stop taking salaries.

 Enough of this drama and just give me my refund!

----------------------

UPDATE:

Saw this on this news again yesterday, 8 May 2014. I noticed that this was posted originally on 20 November 2012. So the Telcos somehow managed to ignore the NTC for more than a year without consequence! Wow. Either crack the whip or abolish yourselves NTC -- you useless piece of drain on taxpayer's money. Stop taking your salary if you can not do your job. As of  the news yesterday, the spokespersons of these Telcos are still saying they are going "study" the memo once they receive it.

Quickly Super Taro Drink by Brando

May 5 peso coin sa loob ng Quickly Super Taro Drink!!! Me and my son bought said drink in its booth inside greenhills arcade near celphone area. Half way of my son's drink he noticed a 5 peso coin inside the sealed glass. Confronted the crew nobody admits any fault. Talked to the owner personally nothing happened. made online complaint with DTI nothing happend...oh saan ka pa? Only in the Philippines! 

Tubiiiiiig!

Maynilad is going to turn off the water supply in my housing unit late this afternoon. My wife texted me this information just this morning. And I feel helpless as I am currently on the road doing field work and not due to return till Thursday or Friday. Tell me Maynilad, how fair is it that I am fully paid, heck, OVER paid having shouldered the penalties of "system's loss" for the last two or three months, and still I get this harassment. My seven-month pregnant wife is home alone, and you are turning off her water! I am FULLY PAID damn it! Fuck you Maynilad. FUCK YOU!

BPI Express Assistant (BEA)

One of the recent most noticeable changes to the way BPI handles their customers is this. A touch-screen console which serves as a great replacement to the old Deposit/Withdrawal Slip, etc.
I like this new system not only because it makes it faster and more convenient but also because it's not hard to use. Fonts and buttons on the console are large enough to be read by anyone and the layout, the overall programming of options, the step by step approach to get your idea across thru the terminal, has obviously been thought about thoroughly. It then dispenses a cue number for you and all you have left to do is wait.
It would hardly take seconds or maybe a few minutes at max for one to figure out how it works. Truly a user friendly experience.

But like all else, it has this itchy downside that would need to be scratched. Sadly, there are consoles which haven't been calibrated or have been calibrated the wrong way. Having been familiar with some other touch-screen devices, I just tried to adjust my fingers to adopt to the miscalibration. However, most of the other people had too much of a hard time using it.

If in case the people of BPI are reading this, I hope they realize that the people they are paying to assist people with the new BEA system should be able to do real-time calibration. What's the use of having two consoles in one branch if one ain't calibrated? XD

Ultimately, I appreciate the effort. It's a good step. . .Y'know. . . As long as we ignore the miscalibrations. :3

Since when did we become Somalia?

Woke up 4 am to Skype with a client 12 timezone hours away. He had sent me new materials and given me additional tasks for an ongoing project. But even before that, I badly needed to update my online portfolio, which I was thinking, wouldn't take that long.

I had a full day scheduled.

But not today countered Meralco. Today, you will grind your teeth in agony. Bang your head against the wall.  For today, no storms, no earthquakes, no reasons, just a normal regular day, will be a no electricity day.

click the image to enlarge

Intel and its Throttling Technology by smilesnhighfives

The concept of Throttling ain't new. It used to be referred to as "Overclocking" but the latter was usually done manually.

Back then, whoever can overclock his processor could boast about his/her tech muscles since very few know about it.
And it isn't really done by standards back then for a purpose.

Overclocking is a process where you manually raise the limit on the processor, thus, making it perform faster. Basically, you let the electricity flow thru it faster, thus, raising its temperature faster (and most probably hotter than how it's supposed to).

Tech people back then warned people that if they wanna try overclocking, they should be very cautious since it's gonna reduce the effective lifespan of their processors.

Right now, Intel, along with other manufacturers boast of their "Throttling technology" where their processors would react to what processes you make your processor do like as if squeezing more on the throttle on a motorcycle if you needed the extra speed.

This has revolutionized things since what used to be bottlenecks on computer processing now became smoother, especially on the newer intel models.

Problem is, Throttling = automated Overclocking.
If you're the type of person who constantly runs apps which require a lotta processing power, (i.e. Online games, or most games in general, except those that are light enough) then chances are, your computer is constantly throttling.

This has happened to me while I was handling large volumes of work. I was constantly running some heavy applications necessary for my work and it was one of those times when I had to go on 48-hour shifts just to cope up with the deadlines.

My processor overheated and I thought I won't be able to revive my laptop. Luckily, I was able to do some minor adjustments that allowed me to run it for a while longer. Sadly, it only lasted for around 2 more weeks. (At least, I've finished majority of my work with that time.)

When it burned out for the second and final time, the company I was working for sent me a spare laptop, with slightly lower specs than what I was using.

Things were going smoothly for a while until I had only 4 hours of work pieces left. It went KABOOM.

2 laptops in a row, same symptoms, same work pattern, same kinda fireworks. (Don't worry, there weren't actual flames. XD)

However, I'm not sure about the new i series. I was using Core 2 Duo and Dual Core respectively but nonetheless, they were both "Throttling" Processors.

If you're using one of the new Intel processors, majority of the BIOS that supports them would have the option to disable THROTTLING. (And this was how I made a temporary fix on my first laptop. Too bad it was already damaged before I learned of this. ~_~ I would've saved that laptop before it got to that point.) I suggest that if you don't really need this technology, you should disable it. It can be re-enabled any time you want anyway.

Dear Smart

Know that when your broadband signal dies for a day, followed by a day of signal that barely crawls, some people, like me, do not only lose facebook time, but actually lose money. The internet is my second office with my online side-business/es. It is not enough that you apologize on your facebook page.

I now understand why when I look for online jobs and the requirement is "high-speed internet", broadband is not accepted. Your reputation precedes you. You can not be relied upon. This is the simple truth. So enough of your glossy TV ads and work on your product instead.

I am not even going to ask you pay the penalty of my lost business but how about a refund? That would be a start. But "Sorry?" Ganun na lang? Soli nyo load ko. That is only fair.


Definitely pissed, 
a Smart Broadband customer.

Nearly killed myself in a Jollibee store

You read that right, I nearly killed myself in a Jollibee store this morning. The culprit? Those cheap chairs with the broken backrests that Jollibee refuses to throw out. What makes these chairs more dangerous is that those backrests do not totally break off, making it the perfect trap.

Had it not been for my quick reflexes, I would have fallen, back of my head first, right smack onto the concrete floor. I checked the other chairs and found another four of these chairs with the broken backrests in the same Jollibee store. Leading me to think that I am not the first customer to have almost been seriously injured. 

Should I have complained? But then again, complained about what? The sad reality is these corporate giants play by the rule "no harm, no foul". Until someone gets seriously injured and sues Jollibee for damages, these chairs will remain in use. 

So customers be warned, watch your kids, watch your backs, you are not safe in a Jollibee store. 

Notice the two cracks on this chair being used in a Jollibee store.

Google Maps More Complete Than iOS 6 Apple Maps

The new iOS 6 maps application lacks information when it comes to side streets. This will be very upsetting to the majority of people in the Philippines who heavily rely on their iPhones for navigation.

This has been planned by Apple several years back. Apple bought 3 mapping companies in the past 3 years. The current map info used by Apple is by TomTom. If you visit the TomTom website you will see that they are also selling their own GPS devices. A small pebble in the road for Apple, they just really had to get rid of that Google Map service asap. :-)

Unless Apple is prepared to spend for a whole fleet of Subaru cars to ply the streets... Google Maps is still king!

iOS 6 Compared To Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

While the disenchantment with iPhone 5 and iOS 6 is deafening, Android 4.1 is still nowhere near iOS 6 in terms of market penetration. Based on reports, the current Android operating system, Jelly Bean 4.1, is only used by 1.2% of all Android phone users globally. You can read about it on this Wikipedia entry dated September 2012.

iOS 6 on the other hand is available on all iOS devices. On all iPads, iPhones, and iPods. It's available NOW.

The typical waiting time for Android users is 9 months to get the latest update. This is due to the huge backlog of Android devices that need to be updated. If you can imagine, after Google releases the source code to the public, the manufacturers have to re-adjust to the new updated source code. And this takes time depending on how many phone models the brand is carrying. This means that if you have the latest Android phone model now, you will probably be getting the latest operating system late next year.

At home, we have 5 Android devices. Since these are mid-range gadgets we don't mind having a not so advanced OS. The latest Android competitor to the iPhone is priced almost the same. I've done my own hands-on and I am not getting the latest Android phone for 2 reasons only.

OVER-RATED TECHNICAL SPECS and UNRELIABLE OPERATING SYSTEM.

On paper the Android phone specs is superb! On paper that is. After testing several demo units, I still find my iPhone 4S faster, smoother, and without a hiccup. The camera of the iPhone 4S is one of the most obvious subsystem that benefits from a super phone. From camera activation time to low-light sensitivity, the iPhone 4S wins over the latest high-end Android Phone. I should be comparing the iPhone 5 but I don't have one yet. Handicapped or not the iPhone still wins.

Crazy lazy policy of Maynilad

For the next 5 months my water bill is going to be charged 92 Php more than what I actually consume. Why? Simply because I live in a housing complex with a Homeowners' Association that Maynilad chooses to bill, instead of  going house to house, billing individual residents. You know, the way NAWASA used to do it.

Maynilad have chosen the easy lazy way.

In theory, this should be no problem. It would be more convenient I suppose. In theory, that is. But in practice, this creates a lot of headaches for the individual residents.

Why are my delinquent neighbors suddenly my problem? I pay my water bills on time. Why am I being made to suffer, Maynilad? And oh, that leak a good 50 meters away from my water meter is my problem now too? Aren't these problems supposed to be your problems, Maynilad? I pay for the water that I consume, that should be the end of it. But no, because my Homeowners' Association owes, I am made to suffer "water rationing", and on top of that, now this 92 Php surcharge.

And because Maynilad is a public utility company with NO COMPETITION, like the rest of us poor citizens, I have no choice but to take it on the chin, grin and bear it.

Third-world problems, because Maynilad profits from your misery.

Minecraft Revolution

What do you get when people get tired of high definition, high resolution, extreme frame rates, super sampled textures, anti aliased, triple buffered, multi gigabyte games? Minecraft! This stone age game is taking the game industry by storm with its pixelated textures and simplistic objective. It all started with a free downloadable demo. The demo version of the game reached 4 million downloads! Gamers loved it! Then the developers started selling it at US$26.95. You don't have to be a math expert to add all the six zeroes. The website says they have 7,000,000 paid downloads already. This does not include iPhone and android sales.

This was a sideline programming project by one person only in 2009. Now it's continually polished by just a handful of developers.

The game recently launched on Xbox and sold 400,000 downloads in the first hour!

Search YouTube for minecraft and you'll see the enormous amount of videos created by its fans.

Diablo 3 Not For Asians

Diablo 3 is only for players located in the USA. The game developer Blizzard, increased the game's difficulty to make it more engaging to players who have been buying items sold in the Real Money Auction House (RMAH). Unfortunately RMAH is only available to people who's IP is traceable to the USA. If you're like me who lives in the Philippines your account will be suspended if you try to participate in the auctions.

Underwhelmed by Chow King delivery

The one time I had food delivered by Chow King via chowkingdelivery.com, even my lowered expectations was severely disappointed. And no, I am not that difficult customer who demands 5 star service from a fast food joint. Chow King is fast food. But at more than 300 Php for an order that would satisfy two adults, cost-wise, Chow King should be at the upper-end of the fast food totem-pole.

First, they delivered the food late. No excuses here, not even for a first time delivery. I provide the same delivery information to other fast food delivery services and they deliver on time. And because it is late, it is also cold. Chow King is not that great to begin with, but cold, Chow King lauriat is nearly inedible. And you paid more than 300 Php for that nearly inedible cold mush that has been tossed about in it's poorly constructed delivery package.

I made the mistake once. I have no plans to make the mistake again.

Smart's confusing promos/bundles

I am a prepaid subscriber of Smart for 5 years non-stop. I have not gone back to Globe, nor have I tried any other carrier being over-all satisfied with Smart's cellphone service. Primary reason being that Smart's cellphone signal is by far, as advertised, the widest coverage in the Philippines. I would know, I travel to a lot of barrios as a job requirement.

If there is a fly on this ointment however, is the constant text messages of promos that Smart bombards you with everyday. When I pasa-load to my wife, Smart is like the overly attached cellphone carrier that texts you back something like 3 pages of often unrelated messages, instead of just confirming that the transaction has been completed. And then when you do subscribe to one of these promos, ironically, Smart will not text you a clear mechanics of that promo. They never tire of promoting it. But once you avail of it, you are left to your own devices to try and decipher the often cryptic mechanics of these promo bundles.

One time, I registered for an unlimited text, call, data package bundle. Smart texted back that I was indeed registered, but oh so conveniently forgot that you have to append the cellphone number of the Smart or TNT number you would call with *22-something-then-11-digit-number. Only found out after my load had run out. I called their customer service and told them what had happened. I was told that the mechanics was in one of the text messages. Ok, I said, I often ignore those, I might have missed it, so that would be my fault. But when I went back to check my messages, none of the 4 or so text messages from Smart that I got for that day, said anything about appending the secret magic numbers to avail of the call part of the bundle.

I called back Smart's customer service and related how one of them, just a minute before, had flatly lied to me about the mechanics being in the text message. I explained that I wasn't too angry about losing the load, but being lied to in my face, I had to scream that they are a multi-billion dollar company who lies to filch from their customers.

I do hope that my conversation was recorded, because that is the message that I want delivered to Smart's higher-ups. Stop with all these confusing promos. Text message us the clear mechanics. And for crissakes stop lying to your customers.

Microsoft Explorer Touch Mouse

The new touch-based scroll mechanism does not work. We humans have moist fingers. Some of us are more wet than the rest of the population. Replacing the traditional wheel with a touch sensitive strip pad is a bad idea. Microsoft engineers probably wanted to steer clear of the Apple Magic Mouse.

Globe iPhone 5 Reservations

Globe teases subscribers with their latest iPhone 5 reservation text blast. If you're like me who's been a Globe subscriber for many years, it's a reassuring feeling that your telco continues to be "the leader in postpaid".

I've already made sure and still working on making sure that I will be getting the iPhone 5 review in the Philippine blog scene first.

In the last iPhone 4s launch I was so excited that I had too much coffee and wasn't able to sleep! Only to find out that the 4s looked exactly the same as the previous model. My wife had the "hehehe" look for the whole week.

A week later I had the hehehe look every time I talked to Siri inside coffee shops. My fingers seem to keep double clicking that button which keeps Siri talking. In the airport, at the supermarket, during client meetings -- this went on for weeks. It was like college all over again. Walking around campus with the prettiest girl in your hand! Some of you can probably relate.

PayPal

I was first forced to create a PayPal account when I had a client from the USA. Initially, I requested to get paid via Western Union. But after several attempts, somehow, the client was just unable to make the necessary fund transfer. And so instead, he just asked me to register a PayPal account. While the client waited on the other side of  the great internet divide, I registered my PayPal account in about 10 minutes or so. And within two minutes of giving the client my email address linked to the freshly created PayPal account, I could confirm that he had made the payment. If only I knew that PayPal would be this painless.

From the PayPal account, I linked my Bank of the Philippine Islands peso deposit account so I could withdraw my money. PayPal auto-converts from USD to PHP using the official exchange rate at the moment of the transaction. Transactions of less than 7K Php are charged 50 Php while transactions over 7K Php are free. PayPal's website declares that fund transfers are completed in about 2-4 business days. All my completed transactions, thus far, has not exceeded 2 business days.

Remember that PayPal auto-converts from USD to PHP. I made the mistake of trying to withdraw from a PayPal USD balance into my USD bank account in the Philippines and this was not allowed. PayPal customer service explained to me via email that this has something to do with the Philippines' anti-money laundering laws, you cannot withdraw from a PayPal USD balance into a Philippine USD bank account. Take note that before making the fund transfer attempt I asked my local bank, Banco de Oro, whether the USD to USD transaction would be allowed and they answered in the affirmative.

Failed/returned fund transfers are charged 250 Php penalty. But in my case, PayPal waived the penalty as a "one time courtesy". That's great customer service right there. And not only that, while I was tracking down my money during the failed fund transfer fiasco, PayPal's customer service never failed to respond to my email queries within 8 hours or so. They are very polite and gives you detailed information. I was almost embarrassed that I was getting this great service from PayPal considering the small amounts I was dealing with.

iPhone 5 Philippines

The time has come for us to start advertising our iPhone 4S "For Sale" on Sulit.com.ph. I was one of the few who flashed around the then new iPhone 4S barely a few weeks after it was launched in the US. I even had beauty shots of it on my Facebook page.

I will be updating this page every 5 minutes during iPhone 5 launch on September 12. Be sure you're online. The iPhone 5 will have a taller screen, faster processor, longer-lasting battery, will have iOS6, improved Siri, a new map application and much more. Apple is also removing the Youtube.com native built-in app and replacing it with their own map app.

Jollibee delivers

It's not the stuff of gourmet delights worthy of a Facebook status update. This is industrial fast food at mass production's most efficient best. If you are stuck in the office, however, doing overtime work, or you are just too lazy to prepare your own food at home, a Jollibee order might just be the ticket to carry you through to the next meal.

Just go to their website jollibeedelivery.com, register once so that the next orders will be a lot easier, then order away. And in 30 minutes or less, as advertised, the order will be at your door.

Ironically, I would say that Jollibee takes so much pride in this delivery service that it has become even better than their in-store service. Your hot food will be delivered still hot and your soft-ice cream desserts still frozen. Just qualify for the minimum 200 Php order and there is no reason why you would want to suffer the long lines at the Jollibee store.

This, of course, is Metro Manila. I have not ordered Jollibee from outside the Metro and therefore can not comment on their service in other parts of the country.

Right now, Jollibee delivery is my default fast food ticket whenever we are too busy to prepare a meal at home. In the past 3 years or so that I've been a customer, I can recall of only one time that they missed the 30 minute deadline. Missed it by less than 5 minutes. And I was given free coupons for vanilla twirls for being made to suffer those extra two or three minutes.

Wi Tribe 4G

Where is "PANA - Truth in Advertising" when you need them? When I was in elementary school all ads had this logo but now it breaks my heart every time I see a Wi Tribe billboard. I feel like going up the billboard and shout at it. That would really make me feel better after they screwed me many months ago.

Their latest ad "Why Wi Tribe? Because Facebook loads in your face!" I can't seem to feel their presence in Facebook. If you can search for Wi Tribe let me know via comments below. All I see is the Pakistan Wi Tribe.

I've read several blogs that complain about their service but Wi Tribe seems not affected at all. So this might be just a shout in the dark, but the mere fact that you are here reading this means Google led you here when you searched wi tribe.

4th paragraph and here is my report on this service. It's slow anywhere in the Metro. It just works inside the Wi Tribe office. When you take it out, it takes minutes to load a Facebook page. The company invested in billboards and advertising instead of 4G infrastructure.

Globe Tattoo

Choosing your internet service provider in the Philippines that comes in the quick and hassle-free usb plug-it package, largely depends on your location. Some areas are Smart, some are Globe, with Sun, still just a minor character in the mix. Much as I would prefer Sun to avail of the cheapest surfing packages, that really depends where you're located. In fairness to Sun, when I tried to buy a usb plug-it from them, they asked me where I was going to use it and was politely told that Sun's signal  at that particular location crawls. So thanks to that honesty, I saved a few hundred bucks.

When I relocated to Cavite for a while, I was forced to switch from Smart to Globe. Cavite is Globe territory. To be fair to Globe, they're not all that bad. In fact, I would say that Globe is faster than Smart. Globe at its best versus Smart at its best, judging by nothing else but speed and Globe wins by a definite margin. It was with Globe Tattoo that I first breached 2 mbps using a usb internet plug-it.

But the thing with Globe is, you never know. One day you are getting great service, the next day you have nothing. This is the reason I do not register for anything more than a 50 Php for one day surfing package with Globe.

Then there is the fact that Globe Tattoo signal dies when the power is out. I don't know how it is in other areas, but as far Cavite goes, when the power is out, the internet is out. This means that the two hour battery life of my laptop is useless as far as getting news from the web.

Then there is Globe Tattoo's customer service. One year into buying my Tattoo plug-it, Globe decided that my sim card was obsolete. I must have bought from an old stock or something,  all I know is that one day, for no apparent reason at all, I just couldn't register for any surfing packages with Globe Tattoo. I tried their customer service, they were useless. I only found the solution from other users who've had the same experience when I posted my complaint on internet forums. Changed the sim card and I was back in business again. So that's 100 Php out of my pocket just because Globe's programmers decided my sim numbers aren't cool anymore.

And then finally, the reason I loathe Globe service with a passion, was that fateful day when Globe decided to cap their unlimited surfing package to 1 gig. And they still had the gall to call it unlimited. With  the same one day package with Smart Bro, I can download 3 movies in the background that would be worth around at least 2 gigs. That's unlimited. Not this crap that Globe is trying to peddle.

It's really sad. Globe Tattoo could be a great product, the potential is there. You can almost see it. If only they treated their subscribers as customers and not like victims.

Samsung Galaxy Mini

From a Nokia phone model that gave me nothing but call and text functions, I jumped right into the smartphone age with the Samsung Galaxy Mini. Costing almost 9 K Php total for the basic unit jazzed up with the essential add-ons -- that means a 16 gig memory card, scratch proof plastic cover, jelly casing, and a carry-on pouch, the Mini is by no means the deep end of the Galaxy pool. It is a starter unit. And it feels like one. You get one camera with passable quality but no flash. It is that kind of a deal.

But you buy the Mini, because it is the cheapest in the Galaxy family. You get almost all the functionalities of its bigger more expensive Galaxy brothers but without breaking the bank. Sure, you have a much smaller 3.14 inch screen display, but then again, you have a smaller phone. And I am one of those who still like small phones.

You get a smartphone for less than 10K Php and that's really the point of the Mini. You get to surf the net, and more importantly, you get to install apps from the Google Play store. And that really is what it's all about, the Andriod apps. But even here, the Mini falls a little bit short. Condemned to eternal mediocrity with an Android Froyo OS, the Mini is okay with most of the utilitarian apps, but not with the heavy graphic games. If you can live with that then the Mini might just be the smartphone for you.

3G Wireless-N Broadband Router

Because I am a Smart Bro prepaid usb plug-it subscriber, it became necessary for me to find a way to split my internet service once we had more than one computer in the house. Luckily, CDR King had such a device. The named for it's function "3G Wireless-N Broadband Router".

At 1,380.00 Php, this device has paid for itself as it has served me well for more than a year now. And yes, it is still working just fine. You do not get to insert that CDR King joke in here. Not for this device at least.

The initial set-up, however, can be a little tricky. This is not plug and play. As for the instructions that come with the device, it was like it was written originally in Chinese then poorly translated into English. And I have only so much patience.

Thankfully there aren't too many customers at the CDR King Robinson's Fairview mall where I bought mine. And their technical support was only too happy to set it up for me. Do not forget to have the technician also install a password. The declared range of this small wifi router is 100 meters. So unless you feel your neighbors deserve the free wifi, a password is in order. Anyway, you only need to input the password key once for each computer.

Smart Bro

I've been a Smart Bro pre-paid user for the last 3 years or so. I bought my Smart Bro usb plug-it right after they halved the introductory price, if I remember correctly, to around 900 php a pop. This was the original version, way before they introduced these new generation of  Smart Bro plug-it variants. In fairness to Smart they have not pushed out my old generic usb into obsolesence. Original sim card and all, the old plug-it still works just fine.

I usually go for the 200 php unlimited surfing package which is good for 5 days. At 40 php a day, I was hoping I would get a little more speed.  There are days when it breaches 1.5 mbps, but those are the rare days. On average, I'd say it hovers at around 500 kbps, at least here at the Novaliches-Fairview area. 500 kbps means youtube videos at 320p lags pretty bad. You can watch it, you just have to be willing to watch it stop and go.

From personal experience, Friday and Saturday nights, from around 5 pm to around 9 pm, and you can expect Smart Bro signal to get pretty clogged up. I know, the guy at the store told you that this wouldn't happen, it's a different technology they said, yeah right. But here I am telling you now, it can be a pain to squeeze out anything more than the basic internet functions at these times.

On the plus side, Smart Bro signal is pretty stable. Even during stormy weather and the whole of Metro Manila suffering from a total black-out, you can still expect Smart Bro to be there with you, so you can surf the latest news on the web with your laptop.

Overall, I am pretty pleased with Smart Bro. If only it was just that much faster and that little bit cheaper, then I'd be perfectly happy.

Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI)

I have been a depositor of the Bank of Philippine Islands with a regular atm savings account for more than a decade. And twice in that span of 10 years, I have had my check deposit not clear on time because some human failed to check the deposit bin of an atm machine. It was a major hassle at the time, but looking back, considering the length of time I've been with the bank, I consider that a mere glitch in their system.

If anything, one major irritant with BPI is their atm service. Unlike other banks where they have interconnected atm machines, BPI maintains the policy of BPI atm cards working solely on BPI atm machines. BPI is not Bancnet, not Megalink. BPI is just BPI.

Well, if you are going to insist on that policy you better make sure you have the resources to back it up. In fairness to BPI, they are trying. Within one kilometer of where I live, there are two BPI branches and 6 BPI atm machines between them. Come near payday however, 6 BPI atm machines usually come down to 2 working BPI atm machines. Queue would be up to an hour when it is a Friday payday before a long weekend. As a long-time BPI depositor, I've learned to avoid these days.

On the plus side, BPI supports a lot of internet/mobile payment methods that I even care to try. I haven't tried bills payment via the internet, because I like the excuse of needing to go to the mall once in a while. What I have done however is link my Smart Money card to my BPI bank account, this way I can reload my Smart prepaid phone and internet services via mobile banking. Now that's a major convenience.

Banco De Oro (BDO)

I opened a Banco De Oro (BDO) US Dollar deposit account in order for me to handle US Dollar checks here in the Philippines. I have always been wary of opening an account with BDO, having seen the long queues in the two branches near where I live. But when I earned a few dollars and got paid in USD checks, I looked for a Philippine bank that offered the least opening amount and least maintaining balance. Banco de Oro, at 200 USD, was it.

After I had opened my BDO account, my fears would soon be realized. I am not even talking about being handed a savings passbook (haha) and not an atm. This is not just BDO after all, USD bank accounts in the Philippines are done via savings passbook. But certainly making your customer queue for an hour or more to even make a face to face inquiry with a teller definitely falls in the category of horrendous customer service.

Aside from USD checks, I also earn a few US dollars here and there and get paid via PayPal. I have already linked my Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) peso account to my PayPal account, and have withdrawn from a USD PayPal balance, auto-converted to Philippine pesos, without a hitch.

But naturally, since I have now a USD bank account I would want to deposit all USD amounts to my USD bank account. I checked BDO's website to find out if this is possible, I was not able to find the information.

And anyway, I still had a 10.50 USD check that I have been too lazy to endure the long BDO queue to get deposited. I'll make the inquiry with a teller and deposit the 10.50, those two birds combined surely is worth the hour-long queue.

Finally, once I had my precious face to face with a BDO teller, I asked her about the possibility of withdrawing PayPal USD money into a BDO USD account. She didn't know. She asked a higher authority in the bank, then came back to me and answered in the affirmative. This information confirmed, I withdrew my PayPal USD money into my BDO USD bank account. Three days later, I got a phone call. Someone from Banco de Oro is now telling me that there is problem. The PayPal deposit, originally in USD amount, is being auto-converted into Philippine pesos. And being in the wrong denomination, can not be saved into my USD bank account. He is now asking me to contact PayPal.

I contacted PayPal via email, and was answered within 8 hours of sending the email. They explained to me that Philippine laws do not allow PayPal to transfer funds into the Philippines without auto-converting it to the local Philippine peso currency. PayPal normally charges 250 PHP for cancelled or returned transactions, but was willing to waive that this one time as a courtesy.

Following morning, first business hour, I texted the BDO person that called me the previous day. I explained to him what PayPal explained to me via email, and reminded him that in fact, I inquired first with their bank before I attempted the fund transfer. Two hours elapsed, and I got no response. So I had to call BDO once again. Once I got hold of the guy, he told me that he got the text message two hours before. He got it, but I guess didn't have the common courtesy to reply with a "k".

As of posting this right now, my USD money is still neither here nor there. It is neither with PayPal nor is it with BDO, and tomorrow is the weekend.

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UPDATE:

September 3, Monday morning. I checked my PayPal account to try and see if my money has returned. It has not. I emailed PayPal and got a reply within 4 hours. If BDO indeed cancelled the failed transaction I can expect my money to return in 4 to 5 business days according to the email.

Pissed with the lousy service from BDO, and the fact that my account was now below minimum, I went to the branch and tried to close my account. That's one last hour of queueing to end my personal BDO hell. Or so I thought. I explained in detail to the teller how the PayPal fiasco has brought my account balance to below minimum. Because I am  unwilling to jump through the hoops of withdrawing from my BPI peso account, convert that to US dollars, then deposit said dollars to the BDO USD account, I have chosen to just close the account. Give me all my money. This has not been a good idea.

She quickly checked my account on her computer, and told me that I can only draw 150 USD which is 20 USD less than my available balance. Of course I had to ask why. I was so pissed at this point that the teller had to ask for a manager to come and talk to me. He explained that my last check deposit of 10.50 USD has not cleared. This means, I need to keep 20 USD in my account just in case that check does not clear and I need to pay the penalty. Uhm, okay. But just so you know, I calmly explained to him, I opened a USD account less than 2 months ago, in that time, 34 USD in PayPal money remain unaccounted for, and now another 30 USD is going to be held in BDO limbo. If ever I can work up the energy to queue again for that last 30 USD, I pointed at the long line behind me, that's minus 5 USD at least, since now I will definitely have to pay the below minimum monthly penalty. Yeah, thanks so much for that.

That settled, the teller counted my money. As she handed me my my cash, I apologized and explained to her that I am just a "small amounts" depositor. 34 USD is not a lot but that represents 34 hours of me doing odds jobs on the internet. 34 hours plus another hour of queueing in BDO hell.