Hangouts

Last year I began an experiment in which I tried to free myself of an actual cell phone service by using Google Voice (along with some third party apps) for VoIP. I had the best results with Skype, but even that was not very convenient. Ultimately I gave up because I don't have a home phone, so I had to be able to rely on my mobile phone. 

When I went back to a "normal" plan on T-Mobile I felt like I had failed in my attempt to change, but was still glad I had tried, and for the experience and what I learned.

That experience makes me appreciate what Google is doing now with the Hangouts app. We can make phone calls that use data, but don't use minutes. I have noticed some hiccups typical to VoIP. For instance yesterday I made a call and when the voicemail picked up, instead of being able to leave a message, the call dropped. But overall the service is much better than anything I was able to accomplish in my attempts. 

So now I am wondering if T-Mobile will let me back onto the so called "secret" prepaid plan that I used in the past. And I wonder if it is even worth the trouble. I should probably make a few more calls with Hangouts to get more comfortable with it before changing things around again.

I appreciate Google for what they are doing to keep things interesting. I'm looking forward to the Nexus 6 (or Nexus X) phone and the Nexus 8 or 9 tablet. Maybe this week they will be announced. The Nexus 7 is pretty much sold out and it looks like the Nexus 5 is heading that way too. I'm excited to see what new devices will be released in the near future, and how they will be priced. 

Nexus 7 going, going, gone

This is probably old news, but I just noticed that the Google Play Store has discontinued the Nexus 7. There are a few Wi-Fi Only models left, but the GSM versions are all sold out.

I've been anticipating the replacement Nexus tablet for a while now. Whether it's an 8" or 9" screen, I am going to be very interested in pickup one up. I'm just hoping they keep it under $300. My 2012 Nexus 7 has been slow for a long time, so I am ready to replace it. Hopefully we will see an announcement from Google within the next couple weeks!

Just because I feel like writing.

Just for posterity, I need to tell the story of my Wednesday morning. This doesn't have much to do with the technology I usually blog about, but I worked my Nexus 5 into the story just to tie it in.

It started on Tuesday night. As I was leaving MBA classes at Bethel University in St Paul, I noticed a little rattling noise coming from the engine of my 1996 Cadillac Seville STS. It sounded like a noisy lifter, or something along that line. So I shrugged and drove home.
By the time I arrived at my home in Columbia Heights, there was smoke coming from the engine, it smelled odd, and was making a lot of noise. I got out the flashlight app on my Nexus 5, and I could see the smoke was coming from the AC compressor. Probably the bearing, but I'm still not certain of that.
So I went to bed and when I woke up I texted my brother-in-law, who then called me and helped determine that I had better not drive it to Anoka in that condition. So I called my boss and said I'd be late. Which sucks because another coworker was going to be late too, and his reason was actually work related.
I had done my research on various internet forums and learned that to bypass the AC compressor, I needed a serpentine belt that is 9 inches shorter than the normal one. So I drove over to Auto Zone and bought what I thought was the correct belt. I took it home and then realized I needed a 1/2" breaker bar, so then I drove over to Harbor Freight and bought a cheap one.
When I got all that home, I removed the old belt (which is in pretty rough condition) and put on the new belt, only to find that it was too long for my purposes.
At this point I was already a couple hours late for work. So I said to heck with it, I'm going to drive to work and fix it later that night.
I only made it a few miles before it was smoking even more and making lots of noise. So I turned around and went back to Auto Zone. I told them I needed a belt that was 6 inches shorter, so they sold me that. I got a refund for the other belt and went home.
This time I removed the original belt and installed the new one, only to find out it was too short. Just about 6 inches too short. So it seems the first belt I had bought was not the size it said it was on the packaging. I didn't want to put the old belt on again, plus it was looking pretty rough. By now it was 11 am and I was really frustrated. I decided to get on my bicycle and head over to Advance Auto and try them.
I get there only to find that all of their belts are numbered by the metric system, but the guy helped me figure out what I needed and I bought that. I stuck it in my back pocket and biked home.
When I got home I was already well acquainted with the way I needed to route the belt. It went on in about 5 minutes. I fired up the engine and it sounded great. I went inside, washed the grease off my hands (and arms) and put on my office clothes. I finally got to work just past noon.
As a side note, every time I changed the belt, all three times, I burned my arm on the motor mount. So I have a nice collection of blisters which are still healing. I think I'll be staying out of the river this weekend. Not worth the risk of infection.
Now my car runs and gets me around, but I have no AC until I fix the compressor. So I'll have to get with my brother-in-law again and see that he thinks I need for parts. More fun in store for sure!

Android 4.4.3

My Nexus 5 received the update to Android 4.4.3 today. Still nothing on my Nexus 7 (2012) tablet. 

I don't see any differences. The update installed pretty quickly. My current phone was not experiencing any problems, so I was not concerned about the bugs they fixed. The camera appears to be working the same as it did in 4.4.2.

So nothing too exciting!

Sprint acquisition of T-Mobile

Yesterday it was being called an acquisition, today it's being called a merger. Either way, it does seem a lot more likely to be approved by regulators than the AT&T failed attempt.

My first response to the idea of these companies becoming one was a negative one. But mostly based on emotion, that fact that I don't much care for Sprint. I have a bit of nostalgia because my first mobile phone was a Sprint PCS unit which happened to be an early smart phone. I bought it on clearance and it served as my PDA and phone. I loved the old beast, but it went through batteries quickly. It worked great when I lived in Kansas City and traveled throughout the south. But then I moved to Minnesota.

Here in Minnesota (and Wisconsin), Sprint coverage is pretty spotty, and nonexistent outside the metro. Stories about their crappy data backbone have not stirred any warm feelings within my heart. T-Mobile service is not great outside the metro either, but it's been quite good in Minneapolis and the suburbs.

The thing I don't like is the CDMA vs GSM formats. I wonder which one will become standard. It makes more sense to keep GSM because of the way they could continue to steal customers from AT&T. I guess if they switch to CDMA, I will just have to take my phone to AT&T.

Hopefully the regulators see the benefit of four carries competing against each other. But if they do merge, then I also hope I like the new company.

On a totally different subject...

This week I went to a real running store and bought some better running shoes, with the help of a knowledgeable shop owner. I have been wearing size 10 since high school. He measured my foot and was certain that I need a size 11. So that's pretty interesting. It also explains why so many of my dress shoes feel a bit snug. My waist line has expanded since high school, so why not my shoe size too? Perhaps it's time to throw out a lot of my old shoes and buy some size 11's to replace them.
I am hoping that spending more money on shoes, and having an expert help me select them, will decrease the pain I have in my Achilles tendons. Next month I will be running a 5k, so I will find out soon enough.

Good news and bad news

I recently switched away from the $30/month "secret" plan from T-Mobile prepaid, and switched to the $70 postpaid (normal) plan with T-Mobile. While I was waiting for the new SIM card to arrive, I still wanted to use the WiFi capabilities of my Nexus 5. For some reason I decided to turn off mobile data. Well after my prepaid plan was done, my phone was no longer able to connect to the T-Mobile service at all. I took my phone to the T-Mobile store in my neighborhood, and there was a guy names Charles who gave me lots of help. He helped me for a couple of hours before giving up, but then he helped my find the number to call Google and get help from them. They set me up with a warranty order, and I received the new phone the next day.
I'm thrilled with both T-Mobile and Google for the great service I was given. It was a pain to go through the experience, but they were both so helpful that it made it almost pleasant. I was very impressed!