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This blog will still be here as an archive and backup but there will no longer be new posts. Thanks everyone for all the support and encouragement. Hopefully I’ll now be even more committed to post new stuff on the blog

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Have never heard of The Whitest Boy Alive ? Don’t worry, you’re not the only one. I had many friends who were asking who was this whitest boy alive and is he anything like that white boy in Powder; which is a 90′s movie for those of you who don’t know. Once I mentioned that it’s one half of Kings of Convenience; who brought the house down during their very first Kuala Lumpur show last year, only then did some of them go “Ahhhhhhh”.

The Whitest Boy Alive

The Whitest Boy Alive (TWBA) is three-fourths German and one-fourth Norwegian. Erlend Øye, the Norse quarter this musical pie, is better known as half of indie band duo Kings of Convenience (KOC). This time he sings again, yielding electric guitars and dancier tunes thanks to his mates from Deutschland: Marcin Öz on bass, Sebastian Maschat on drums and Daniel Nentwig on keyboards. What started off as a side project during a Berlin stint back in 2003 has evolved, now they tour the world showcasing their unique music style. TWBA is a little bit pop, a little bit rock, a little bit disco, but completely bound to get you feeling good and busting out those moves on the floor.

I reached Mist Club, Bangsar at around 7pm and I was early !! Yes, I was so early that some of the sponsors weren’t there to put up their banners/promo material yet. I collected my tickets from the registration counter and waited for friends to arrive. The doors opened at 8pm and the fans just rushed in and put up roots in front of the stage. Thank  god I wasn’t that far behind and got a pretty good spot.

First on stage was Tenderfist, who also opened for Kings of Convenience (KOC) the last time they were here, they obviously must be doing something right. They were as good if not better than they were during KOC. It’s interesting to watch them grow over the year; they sound and look a lot more composed and confident. They did a pretty good set albeit a short one. I really liked their new upcoming single “This Wasted Heart”, you’ll just have to wait till 29th April 2011 to listen to it yourself. Here’s a preview of it.

Tenderfist warming up the crowd

Performing "This Wasted Heart"

After waiting for what seems like almost forever, TWBA finally came out and the crowd starts screaming their head of. Starting of their set with “Keep A Secret” they got the crowd singing,bopping and grooving along with the band.

Erlend Øye

Marcin Öz

Daniel Nentwig

Sebastian Maschat

They played an amazing set. Sure Erlend’s vocal were very familiar, but this time around the vibe was very different compared to the soothing sounds of KOC. The whole night was full of energy and enthusiasm as Erlend swoons the crowd with his singing and guitar playing skills. Daniel on the keyboard not wanting to be left out also showcased his skills as he carried his keyboard around the stage !! Who said only guitarists can have fun on stage.

Daniel having fun on the keyboard

It’s always an experience being in a small gig such as this as the band gets intimate with the crowd and ensure they have a good time and enjoy the music that is being played. Being so close to the band is definitely a bonus as Erlend suddenly jumps into the crowd with his guitar while still singing and playing.

Erlend close and personal

Erlend then decides to show off his own moves on the floor while his fans continued dancing with him. Wow talk about being close to your fans. From the very first number of the set down to the encore, the audience was dancing nonstop.  One thing that you can count on is, to constantly be surprised. What starts off as a familiar tune totally gets changed mid way as the band adds on extra sound effects and narrations on top of  their already awesome song. To those that attended The Whitest Boy Alive gig, it was one unpredictable but memorable night.

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Beliebe it or not, Justin Bieber is coming to town !! Yes, if you’ve not heard it by now you’ve probably either been living in a cave or trying very hard to not take notice Well for all you Beliebers out there, here’s a chance for you to score some free tickets to his concert as well as the upcoming movie ‘Never Say Never’. C’mon you know you’ve caught yourself humming or whistling to his tune once in a while, I know I have. If you don’t want to pay for tickets here’s the perfect chance, plus I’m sure you’ll have many girls dying to go with you. See win/win situation. Ladies, join the contest and bug your man to join as well so you’ll have double your chance to win tickets !!

The best part of this contest is you don’t need to be a blogger to win !! Yes that’s right, all you have to do is take a picture of yourself and and overlay a TuneTalk Twibbon (picture overlay) on your Facebook or Twitter profile and get all your friends to ‘LIKE’ the photo. If you are more adventurers or want to get better tickets to watch the Bieber closer you can do your best dance or singing impersonation and get your friends to ‘LIKE’ it. The top 5 ‘LIKED’ will get  a pair of tickets !! It’s that simple, no fancy words involved.

MY WORLD TOUR CONCERT
Top 5 Most ‘LIKED’ Bieberfied Display Picture (RM288 X 5 pairs)
1. Download the TuneTalk Twibbon (picture overlay) for your Facebook & Twitter here:-
a) For your Facebook display picture
b) For your Twitter display picture
2. Change your Facebook & Twitter profile image, upload it on your Facebook & Twitter account.
3. Upload it on Advertlets Facebook link
4. Get as many people to ‘LIKE’ your photo on Advertlets Facebook.

Top 5 Most ‘LIKED’ Bieber Video Impersonation (RM358 X 5 pairs)
1. Give your Best Bieber Dance or Singing Impersonation.
2. Upload it on Advertlets Facebook
3. Get as many people to ‘LIKE’ your video on Advertlets Facebook.

For the movie tickets though you’ll have to do a blog post so get those creative juices flowing. Here’s how you can win a pair of movie tickets for Never Say Never Movie Premier

NEVER SAY NEVER MOVIE PREMIERE
Top 5 Best Blogpost (3D Movie Tickets X 5 pairs)
Top 30 Runners up Blogpost (Normal Hall Tickets X 30 pairs)

For this contest, you MUST include these in your blog post;
1. About TuneTalk prepaid (http://www.tunetalk.com/services?page=features)
2. Why you deserve to attend the Movie Premiere
3. And what does ‘Never Say Never’ phrase mean to you.
4. Include the Movie & Concert flyer

That’s it bloggers! 3 ways to Win Justin Bieber concert tickets & movie premiere!
So start changing your display picture, get as many LIKES or blog your way to the movie premiere.

Terms and Conditions:

- Your entry must link to this blog post and have the 2 images (ABOVE) included in your post.
- (IMPORTANT) Do send your post URL to (jason.ong@advertlets.com) after you’ve done your blog post.
- Winners will be notified via email for tickets confirmation. Judges’ decision is final.

Closing date for all entries and voting is 31st March 2011 at 11.59pm

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The Google Nexus S was recently launched in Malaysia last weekend. I had a chance to play around with it and here’s some interesting observation on Google’s latest Nexus.

Countour Display

Contour display

The “Countour display”, Google and Samsung claims that the Nexus S is the first device to offer such a display, looking at all the other flat touchscreen displays out there currently this really made the Nexus S special. Holding  against your cheeks feel really natural as the curvature of the glass hugs the curvature of the cheeks. With a contoured screen, coupled with a ridge on the back of the phone makes it easy and comfortable to type with. I was intrigued with this little technological marvel and decided to dig deeper.

Nexus S teardown

iFixit recently took the Nexus S apart and what do you know, the screen of the phone was actually flat, a curved piece of glass is the one that gives the Contour Display it’s shape. The glass is solidly glued right onto the AMOLED display and after some heavy heat gun action they manage to detach it from the housing. Don’t you just love the marketing people right now ?

Nexus S glass

Either way flat or curved, Nexus S users still enjoy the curved exterior surface with an ergonomic bend to it. I was really hoping to see a truly curved AMOLED panel. I still think Contour Display is a neat idea.

No microSD Slot

Yes, strange but true. The Nexus S doesn’t have SD slot and has no support for any form of memory expansion. You’ll have to make use of the built in 16 GB memory. It’s sad to know that Google for whatever reason has not chosen to include a SD slot. Definitely will be a deal breaker for some especially those that like to carry a lot of music and movies around in their phone.

No HD Recording

Like OMG !! The phone is capable of HD playback @ 720p and yet it can’t record HD videos. Why would they want to cripple their latest device in such a way when HD recording is a plus point nowadays ? I just hope this issue can be resolved with an update from Google.

No ARM A9 Chipset

Nexus S comes with the A8 processor and is not dual core. C’mon Samsung/Google, the A8 processor was used in the Galaxy S which was launched last year. The Nexus was suppose to set the way for future Android phones not sit in a corner and bask in the glory of last year’s technology !! Pretty sure Gingerbread with it’s optimised core would still be able to run smoothly on the 1Ghz processor but it would have been nice to have a dual core in it.

No Bluetooth 3.0

It’s another no for Nexus S. Samsung had Bluetooth 3.0 support on the Galaxy S and yet in the Nexus S it somehow went missing and all we’re left with is support for Bluetooth 2.1. I don’t use bluetooth that often but it’s nice to know that if and when I need it, my spanking brand new phone from Google will support Bluetooth 3.0 which has a higher bandwidth and utilises a lot less energy.

No digital zoom

This might not be a problem for many as digital zoom does nothing other than crop the image to a larger size when taking picutres. To those who frequently use this option will definitely be disappointed with the Nexus S, such a simple feature left out from the camera app. Hopefully Google patches this one up as well together with the 720p recording feature.

Nexus S camera app

Supports VoIP/ SIP Calling

Nexus S users will be able to place VoIP calls, or calls made over the Internet, without the need for any third-party client, like Skype, thanks to new SIP support in the Android Gingerbread OS–though you’ll need a SIP account and you’ll only be able to call others who use SIP. SIP can help save on your monthly allotment of voice minutes, since your calls go directly over the Web.

VOIP calls

New Support for Near Field Communications (NFC)

The Nexus S with Android Gingerbread has new support for near field communication (NFC) technologies. NFC is a short-range, wireless technology that allows for quick and easy data-transfer between devices and objects with embedded NFC-tags. NFC can be used for a variety of purposes, including gaining additional information about a product or service by “scanning” it’s respective NFC tag, and enabling various forms of mobile payments.

Near fields communication

I must say after playing around with the device and knowing what’s under to hood I’m a little dissapointed. Google’s flagship phone which used to be the envy of many is now left playing catch up with the newer batch of phones running on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). I guess second time’s not really the charm in this case.

Further reading

• Nexus S Teardown (ifixit.com)
• Why Bluetooth 3.0 is better (Gizmodo)

If you head over to Samsung’s Facebook page you’ll see an image with the Galaxy Tab followed by the numbers “78910″. The numbers might seem cryptic at first but there’s a high possibility that it denotes the different display sizes of the Galaxy Tab; 7″,8.9″ and 10.1″.

New Galaxy Tab

The image also showcases a front-facing camera as well as a honeycomb design, which most likely is what the new table will be launched with. Here’s some more pics from pocketnow.com

Brochure front

Brochure back

From the looks of it the 8.9″ Galaxy Tab will come with a dual core 1 Ghz processor, weighs 470 grams and only 8.6mm thick. The display will support 1280×800 resolution which gives it a higher pixel density compared to the Motorola Xoom.

If you’re interested in catching the stream, head here

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Bubble Tea, an addiction to most people and with an array of bubble tea shops strewn around town, it’s often difficult to know which ones are really good and worthy of a revisit. Personally, I love having a cup of bubble tea and am constantly on the lookout for a shop in the mall. The variety of flavours and colours keeps me constantly coming back for more as I challenge my taste buds with flavours like peach,lychee, passion fruit,mint, chocolate, grape fruit, mango, yakult; the variety is just practically endless. Of course there’s also the traditional milk tea, which is an all time favourite. Bitting into the ‘bubbles/pearls’ is what the fun is all about in bubble tea.

Chatime Pavillion

I happened to bump into Chatime in Pavilion as I was making my way to the cinema. It’s located at Lot C4.09.00, Level 4, Pavillion Kuala Lumpur which is at a quiet little corner. Taking a look at their menu left me confused as there were so many types of bubble tea and some I’ve never even heard of before. I just went with one of their recommended drinks; Passion Fruit QQ.

Chatime recommend

Top 5 drinks

More choices

The passion fruit bubble tea I had was good. It tastes different from the ones you get from the smaller stalls, which a majority of them uses power based ingredients. To me the pearls in a bubble tea is what sets it apart from the rest, it has to have that perfect texture; neither too hard or too mushy. Lucky for me Chatime’s pearls passed the test and it was love at first sip. I love how the straws come in a packaging on it’s own, details such as this definitely makes it more enjoyable.

The shop in Pavilion has tables and chairs nearby for you to sit and enjoy your favourite bubble tea with friends, another plus point compared to other shops around town. If you need to get online to post a picture of your favourite bubble tea, there’s Wifi available as well !!

Passion fruit bubble tea

The best part about Chatime is you can customise your drink to how you like it. More pearls, less ice, less/more sugar; it’s all up to you. Now you can have your bubble tea just the way you like it !!

Make it your own

Now I’m hooked and need my cha cha Chatime but I can’t be travelling to Pavillion all the time just for a cup of bubble tea. Thank god Chatime is just opened in a new shop in SSTwo Mall. You’ll have to grab their flyer to get some discounts and it lasts till 13th April. What better way to try/enjoy a cup of bubble tea.

SSTwo Mall

For those around Subang a shop is coming your way soon !!

Coming soon, SS15 Subang

Chatime is a well known beverage franchise in Taiwan with more than 300 outlets around the world. What make Chatime tea stand out is fresh tea leaves are used combined with ice brewage technique to extract the essence and goodness within the tea leaves. In order to achieve the best taste, the most important is to best control the brewing temperature and time. As a professional tea drinks provider, Chatime master all of those factors using most advanced equipment and provide you with pure, smooth and consistent flavour in every cup.

Promotional video

Join their Facebook page and share the bubble tea love.

With Send2Cloud all you have to do is go to Menu -> Share page -> send2cloud and it opens up the app.

send2cloud

send2cloud

Clicking on send will immediately send the url to your Google Chrome. Don’t worry your computer doesn’t have to be turned on for it to work. Utilising Google doc’s, the application will share the url and the Chrome extension will automatically show an alert when you launch the browser.

send2cloud chrome extension

The extension can be found here. The application is listed in the Android marketplace as “send2cloud”. Firefox users can download the extension here.

“Newszapped is developed with the idea of simplicity – an all in one user-friendly interface to read news from leading news portals, top blogs and magazines from all over the world,” said David yong, CEO of NewsZapped Media.

(L-R) Edison Wong, Mazwan Rozali, David Yong

If you’ve ever used Digg dan Reddit before navigating through Newszapped will be a cinch. With news being aggregated from ove r 100 countries you can be sure that you’re never left in the dark when it comes to the latest happenings around the world.

“We have developed our own alogorithms in sorting news, search and data mining. Our display of customised news and the overall user interface is beatuiful and easy to use,” said Edison Wong, CTO of NewsZapped Media.

Edison Wong, CTO of NewsZapped Media

I’m excited to learn about the new features of NewsZapped and with a simple yet easy to use interface I now can have a local made news aggregator doing all the searching of top news for me. The best part ? It’s made 100% in Malaysia and their developers are eager for feedback and comments to improve the product.

Newszapped

Do take NewsZapped for a test drive, do bear in mind it’s still in it’s beta stages though.

For the latest info on Newszapped; follow them on twitter : @NewsZapped

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Nexus S Launch

Today was the official launch of the much anticipated Google Nexus S by Maxis. This the first Android device to feature the latest OS 2.3, also known as Gingerbread. Jean-Pascal Van Overbeke, CEO of Maxis Berhad said “Maxis is focused on delighting our customers and enriching their lives with the latest, innovative devices to keep up with their ever-changing lifestyle needs and demands.” Mr. Yu Jai Sul, Managing Director of Samsung Malaysia was also present and he said, “Samsung adn Google are working hand-in-hand with Maxis to make the best Android smartphone experience available to the Malaysian market. The Nexus S will give you both functionality and stunning user-experience as it integrates Samsungs’s world-class hardware and award-wining technology with exciting new features.”

Jean-Pascal Van Overbeke, CEO of Maxis Berhad

Yu Jai Sul, Managing Director of Samsung Malaysia

Maxis package

Nexus S

Nexus S

The new Gingerbread boasts improved user interface geared towards simplicity and sped. With the improved keyboard, it allows much more faster and intuitive text input as well as on touch word selection and copy or paste functions. With a 4″ contour display, this device definitely feels nicer to hold and even more natural when it’s against your face during a call. The Hummingbird at 1Ghz provides enough power to ensure smooth operations when using the phone.

Here’s a brief look at the specifications

Display

• 4.0″ WVGA (480×800)
• Contour Display with curved glass screen
• Super AMOLED
• 235 ppi
• Capacitive touch sensor
• Anti-fingerprint display coating

Size and weight

• 63mm x 123.9mm x 10.88mm
• 129g

Processor and memory

• 1GHz Cortex A8 (Hummingbird) processor
• 16GB iNAND flash memory

Cameras and multimedia

• Back-facing: 5 megapixels (2560×1920)
• 720 x 480 video resolution
• H.264, H.263 MPEG4 video recording
• Auto focus
• Flash
• Front-facing: VGA (640×480)
• 3.5mm, 4-conductor headset jack
• (stereo audio plus microphone)
• arpiece and microphone
• Software noise-cancellation

More details

• Maxis website

If you’ve been surfing Digi’s website lately you would have realised that they have announced that the HTC Incredible is coming soon. The soon is now here, HTC Incredible has been officially launched today and Digi will be offering the device with the DG Smart Plan. The phone retails for RM 1999 at th end of april, a subsidy of RM 550 for a 1 year contract and RM 800 for 2 years, making the device priced at only RM 1449 and RM 1199. The downside though is if you’re an existing DG Smart Plan customer, there’s no upgrade or contract extension.

HTC Malaysia has also mentioned that the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) will be coming in June for the Incredible S.

Display:

• Technology: S-LCD
• Resolution: 480 x 800 pixels
• Physical Size: 4″
• Touch Screen: (Capacitive)
• Multi-touch: Yes
• Proximity Sensor: Yes
• Light sensor: Yes

Battery

• Capacity : 1450 mAh

Software

• OS : Android 2.2 (Froyo)
• Processor : Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8255 1Ghz
• Memory : 768 MB RAM

Camera

• Resolution : 8 megapixel
• Flash : Dual LED
• Video : 1280 x 720p (HD)
• Front camera : 1.3 megapixel

More details

• HTC Inredible page
• Digi HTC Incredible S