Tokyo Technology Blog

WiFi in Tokyo

2008-03-16T23:22:00.005+09:00

I recently bought an iPod Touch and was excited at the idea of being able to connect it to the internet anywhere I can get a free WiFi connection.

And connect I did.

WiFi seems to be all over Tokyo. Walking from my apartment to the station while checking available networks, I can see several. A lot of them are secure but luckily, some are not. I just go near any apartment building and for sure, there are available networks.

I see lots of Livedoor and YahooBB named networks near my place. I also occassionaly see some secure Planex networks, which I do know the default password because I am a Planex network owner myself. I did rename my own network to something else to avoid like-minded people prying into my connection. Hehe.

At the subway stations, I can always see three secure networks... 0033, Docomo and Flets-spot. I guess you need to pay them to be able to access them.

Unfortunately most of the time, signals are one-bar weak and sometimes not enough to actually connect me to the web. The strongest connection I can find is, well, inside my apartment. Hehe.

Seriously, I don't think WiFi has a future... even in hi-tech Tokyo. Signal is too spotty and unreliable.

Can't wait for WiMAX!

iBank 3 is Out!

2008-02-27T22:55:00.004+09:00

iBank 3 is Out!

For a long time when I was still a Windows user, I've used Microsoft Money to manage my finances but since moving to the Mac, I found it hard looking for a Mac alternative to Money.

It's very nice and it blends very well with the whole Mac experience -- meaning it's beautiful.

I think it still lacks some of the reporting features of Money but I think I can live without that for now. It's simple, easy to use and it's Mac beautiful. That's all that matters. :D

It's also relatively cheap. You can buy a copy for around 6,000 yen.

Secrets of Magibon

2008-02-25T21:53:00.005+09:00

Magibon is a *very* famous YouTuber, who does nothing but stare at her camera but still gets thousands and millions of viewers.

I think she's American pretending to be a Japanese doing cutesy Japanese "stuff".

Then, there is this well-crafted and EXTREMELY funny video created by allnamestaken14 trying to add audio to Magibon's stares.

It's probably the funniest thing I've ever seen on YouTube!

I suggest you watch the original Magibon video before viewing this but I think it will still be funny if you don't. :D

Did you enjoy it? Hehe.

Damn Final Cut Express

2008-02-03T23:21:00.000+09:00

I got me Final Cut Express (FCE) as I thought it would be the natural next step for us users of iMovie.

Maybe it's just me or iMovie is so much easier to use than FCE. I can do exactly the same thing in iMovie for 30 minutes what it would take me 1 hour to do in FCE.

Most of my complaints against FCE has to do with audio and how it doesn't like MP3 audio and audio from some movie files because they are of a lower bit rate than is required by FCE. I'd have to do conversions and shit just to make audio play on FCE.

Damn FCE. I'm sticking to my faithful iMovie for now.

Not So Mighty Mighty Mouse

2008-01-30T21:40:00.000+09:00

Even though the reviews I've read about the Wireless Mighty Mouse were not so good, I still bought it and now, I'm beginning to see why I shouldn't have.

It's mostly because of that small trackball that easily gets dirty and useless. Wipe it, it gets fixed, but after a few weeks, it gets dirty and useless again.

Ah the pains of being an Apple lover. :)

Gadget Rundown

2008-01-29T15:44:00.000+09:00

What better way to kickstart a personal technology blog than by listing all the gadgets that I currently have. I am not as geeky as I used to be but at I still have my fair share of tokyo gadgetry.

Bluetooth Headset: Plantronics Discovery 655
Digital Point-and-Shoot Camera: Sony CyberShot T-10
Digital SLR Camera: Nikon D40X
Game Machine: Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2
Laptop: White MacBook
Mobile Phone: Metal Copper Softbank 815SH
Mouse: Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse
Music Player: Blue iPod Nano

Most used gadget: White MacBook