I am now connected to the Internet via my Sony Ericsson Z610i. While some might not realize it and while some may have yet to try it out, some mobile phones can be used as a modem to connect to the Internet. It may differ according to the model of your mobile phones and the service provider that you are currently using though.

I have known for a fact (by reading through the manual) that my simple looking Sony Ericsson Z610i is able to function as a modem even from the very first day when I purchased this phone in 2007. However, today is the first time I am trying out this particular function by connecting it to my laptop.

Yup, it’s that easy - Just connect the USB cable to the phone & the laptop (or desktop), and hey presto, you’re connected and ready to surf the ‘net. But of course the connection is not as fast as the broadband that we normally use, but still, it is not that bad. It took less than a minute to fully load this weblog.

An awesome function, I would say. Hmm… Maybe I should consider terminating my current wireless broadband service at home. I mean, who would need another internet connection when one can easily stay connection just by simply connecting one’s mobile phone to the computer, right. And of course, it is also important to ensure that you are subscribed to the unlimited internet package through your phone service provider. You do not want to get a heart attack when you see your phone bill at the end of the month, right. Hehe.

For those who thinks that the connection through mobile phone is too slow for their daily use, Sony Ericsson does provide other Mobile Broadband devices cattered for an individual on the go. To see more of these devices, you can check it out at Sony Ericsson’s website here. But I am not sure whether it is compatible with the local service providers or not… That, you will have to check it out for yourself.

In any event, there are other mobile broadband devices that are currently recognized and registered with Maxis and Celcom. One can always opt for that as well.

As for me, I am going to test out the Internet connection through my mobile phone for a couple more days to analyze its convenience and functionality by going to more websites. If it is definitely as good as the current wireless broadband that I have at home, I am seriously going to consider switching to ‘net usage via my mobile phone alone. I guess as long as I am not downloading BIG files, this should be more than sufficient.

Oh yeah… If you want to know which service provider I am using now, it’s Maxis.

p/s: Who needs a BlackBerry or an iPhone now if your current phone is just as smart? :p

At first, I was contemplating between Sony Vaio and Dell. Both brands have pretty-looking notebooks with vibrant and cheerful colours. However, a comparison between the specs and pricing wise, Dell’s notebook are definitely much much cheaper. The reviews were not that good though. And there will always be a doubt in me about buying stuffs online, especially notebook. Finally, I decided, let’s put the looks of the notebooks aside and concentrate on the functionality.

So yeah, I decided to go and have a look at the notebooks on sale at the Digital Mall, PJ. I was attracted to some of the smaller-sized notebooks; very compact, light and cute! Haha… But the functions are limited though. The smaller notebooks will not be able to tolerate heavy duty graphic-editing related jobs or even heavy duty 3D games. Well, it’s not that I am doing either one of that, but it is always good to know that you can do more with your notebook than just typing. And yeah, I do not want to be paying more merely for the size and mobility that such notebooks can offer without the functionality being there. So I made up my mind that such notebooks are not suited for me and my lifestyle.

Then, I saw the NEC VERSA S3500. It’s small, it’s light, its specs are good, it looks good, it looks reliable, it’s almost perfect! Yeah, I said almost… Because it only has 1 colour - the metallic dark silver.

Ooo… Hmm… I wanted a notebook with another colour, actually. Preferably white or pink. So, decided to have a look around some more.

After a while, I realized that NEC VERSA S3500 is indeed the perfect notebook for me. The specs and the pricing are good.

The specs offered -

1. Operating System - Genuine Windows Vista Home/Starter
2. Processor - Intel (R) Premium (R) Dual CPU T3400 @ 2.16 GHz 2.16 GHz
3. Memory (RAM) - 2GB
4. System type - 32-bit Operating System
5. Hard disk - 160GB
6. And all other specs as stated HERE.

I also got a lot of free stuffs, like a 4GB Apacher pendrive, a headphone, a cooling fan for the notebook, LCD Cleaner, laptop bag, NEC optical mouse and about 20 cute games pre-installed in the pendrive.

The price that I paid for all - RM2,599.

I think that was not bad a deal.

So yeah, this is my new ‘toy’ - NEC VERSA S3500. Been having it for about a month now. So far, I think it performs well. What I love most about this notebook are these -

1. It is TOUGH - It is made of tough magnesium alloy chassis - hence it is TOUGH! Haha. But seriously, it is. I can simply chuck the notebook in my big shopping bag yet when taken out of the bag, the notebook still looks brand new. No scratches, no nothing.
2. It is COOL - Also, because of the material that it is made of, the notebook does not generate heat on the keyboard surface or on the mouse pad. It stays cool the whole day. This is very, very important as it keeps me comfortable all the time when I’m using the notebook.
3. It is VERY LIGHT & SMALL - Third, of course because this notebook is very light, and very compact! It gives me mobility. Like I said, I can simply chuck it in my shopping bag with the rest of the stuffs in there, and continue on with my shopping activities. It’s so light, it does not refrain my movements!
4. It is SLEEK - The look is so sleek and professional, it suits all kind of professions.
5. It has EVERYTHING - Lol… For me, that is. It has wireless, wi-fi, blue tooth, and all other ways possible to ensure I am connected to the ‘net all the time.

Tell me, what is there not to love about this notebook?

More photos from different angle of this fabulous notebook are viewable here: NEC VERSA S3500 Minisite.

So, what do I think of this movie? If anyone were to ask me to give it a rating out of 10 stars, I would say that this movie deserves only 3.5 - 4 stars.

To be honest, I never really fancy any of the Bond movies. This was actually the 1st Bond movie that I have actually watched right from the start till the end. I have heard so much about Bond and the stunts, actions, thrills, etc that a Bond movie could have had. But sad to say, this one failed to impress me.

My rating above is merely based on comparison between this movie and other action thriller movie, like “Eagle Eye” - My favourite! I’m sure all the Bond fans outside would give an even lower rating to this movie, because of the lack of action, thrills, excitement, etc. Yup, I would say it lacks most common things expected of an action movie.

But then again, my thoughts and opinion might be biased, since I came to the cinema with quite a high expectation that this movie is going to be impressive and full of thrills.

Which part of this movie that I like?

Well, maybe the first part, when the movie was just about to start, the car chase, how Bond avoided collision on the road despite non-stop gun shot straight ahead to his face (unreal? yes, it is). That part was kind of thrilling, but the camera positioning was not so good, I would say. It was difficult to really see the ‘big picture’ (literally speaking). For a scene like this, it is important to have a good camera man & movie director to shoot just the right angle at the right time, to maximize the thrill and all. However, the shot here was pretty ‘here and there’, I would say. Yeah, so maybe that’s not the best part of the movie after all.

Well, let’s see. Probably the best part was when the guy that was kidnapped earlier in the movie said something like this, “If you know so much about us, you would know that we have our man everywhere.” And as soon as that guy said that, one of the officer in Bond’s team fired a gun shot at the lady boss. That was cool.

But then, the rest of the movies are not worth mentioning here. It was so bland to the extent that it was quite boring, actually. The action scene (not that much) would tend to be overdone.

For the guys, something to look forward to in this movie (yeah since the action scene was not that much), would be the pretty girls here. Yup, Olga Kurylenko (Camille) was hot (although the freckles at her back was quite visible and quite bad-looking). Anyway, hopefully no Bond fans out there would feel offended by my humble opinion of this movie here. I have not checked any reviews on this movie yet but I foresee that they won’t be much good ones anyway. For anyone else who had watched this movie, I would like to hear your reviews too!

P/S: And of course, I’m one of those who does not fancy the new James Bond fella. He’s BLOND! xp