Galaxy S8 – The Little Things

The screen of the Galaxy S8 is BIG, but as “they” sometimes say, it is the little things that matter.  I don’t know how true that is in all situations, but I’m discovering that it is certainly applicable to mobile technology.

When I moved over to Android and Samsung, from Windows Mobile, I knew about the big stuff that would be different, like the availability of more apps that were part of the “app gap” on Windows.  More important to me are some of the little things.  These first two features and things that I had requested on Windows for many years.  They are small things, but they matter to me.

Today’s double dose of small things are sponsored by the letter “C”.   I use my phone for a lot of things, but two areas that are mission critical in the JDE, are COMMUNICATION and CREATIVITY.  See, the “C” connection happening?  

In A Galaxy S8 Near/Far/Pan Focus Away

I have had my Galaxy for about a week. In that time,  I have played with the camera,  quite a bit. One of my favorite features is Selective Focus. It will take a single photo and allow you to change the focus. To do this you need to select Selective Focus from the camera menu. 

What happens,  is that the camera simultaneously takes multiple photos and gives you these options for effect. You get an option to choose the closest item as a near focus, or the background as a far focus,  or a pan focus,  which puts everything in focus. The editing screen for making that selection looks like this:

So, while the feature is not exactly the same as the dual camera Portrait Mode on the iPhone 7, the flexibility of the multi-frame approach does provide creative options for the photographer. 

Here are some shots with Selective Focus. 

Having the option to change your mind is a convenient and useful feature. Which focus do you prefer? 
Here you see that it works on the front facing camera, as well. 

Do I share my focus with the Beverly Hills sign or not? I can decide that later, with Selective Focus. 

Finally, it works with the front camera in low light. Craziness… 

After a Spinning workout at RPM Fitness Studio

There are limitations to selective focus. The dual camera option on the iPhone 7 lets you do these things from a distance where the Galaxy S8 needs the subject to be relatively close to the phone. For most of what I do this is not a deal-breaker but it would be awesome to combine both approaches and maybe Samsung has that a in mind for the Note 8. Of course, Apple surely has some tricks up its leaves with the upcoming iPhone 8. For now, the Galaxy S8 was the best option for me to choose. What do you think?

Please note, that I wrote a majority of this blog with voice to text on my phone. I think this mobile thing is here to stay and make us even more productive.

Have an apple! 😊 

Tap That – My Tap To Pay Experience

It has been promised for years, but today actually having a wallet in one’s phone is now a real option.   The media’s love affair with all things Apple has made Apple Pay very visible in the headlines.  Outside of the orchard, there are phones that, for years, have had the proper hardware, NFC (Near Field Communications) to get job done.

How does all of this work in the real world? Does it work at all?  Is this all worth it?  I will attempt to answer those questions, with first hand experience.  I setup my Windows Phone powered Lumia 1020 and…well…no spoilers.  Read on to see how it all turned out.

Apps That I’ve Been Playing With on my Lumia

It’s no secret that I rock Windows Phone.  Currently, in the form of a Lumia 1020.  The media loves to badmouth the platform as having “no apps”.  Even owners of Windows Phone jump in when the app they want isn’t available.  While there is some truth to that, there are also lots of really great apps and I’d like to showcase some of them here.  Don’t worry if you’re stuck on Android and iOS, some of these are available to you, as well.

So read on to see what apps that I’m using that you might not be using.

Fix Stuff With Your Lumia

There are several tools pictured here, but you’ll only need one of them to fix the things that I’m going to show you.  If you guess the white Lumia 1020 in the middle of the picture, you’d be correct.

Before we get started, I’d like to point out that while the Lumia 1020 takes great pictures, I’m also impressed with its photogenic qualities in front of the camera.  The Nokia is no diva though and worked well with the hardhat tools that share the spotlight.

OK, let’s dig in and fix some stuff in our lives with the Nokia Lumia 1020 and some apps to help us out.

Why Windows Phone & Nokia Lumia?

I’m often asked about my phone and what I like about it.  Lots of times those questions are from iPhone or Android fans who just want to get into an argument, so I just rattle off a couple of features and let them retort.  When someone is really interested or curious, I go out of my way to answer the questions and to say what I like about Windows Phone.

Today I got an email from a woman I know and her contract has been up and she has a pretty old Android device.  She said “What do you like about Windows Phone? Sell me, Mr. Daly…”.  That was my clue and started to craft an email.  I did have some knowledge about her scenario.  What she liked about Android was in her words, “that I understand Android”.  She’s not a super techie person, so learning curve is a consideration.  I also know that she likes taking pictures. SCORE!  She’s really into Groupon. SCORE!  She does the usual Facebooking, Texting and get this…she talks on the phone!  She also asked me about the notification light that is missing in Windows Phone that is part of Android and how would she know what activities she’s missed whilst potentially away from her beloved Nokia  Lumia 928 (she’s on Verizon).   Finally, she has seen my phone and felt overwhelmed by my Start Screen.

I took all of what I know about her and what I know about Windows Phone, matched them up and I started to jot down some notes in an email and it turned into a Top 10 list, invented for her.  This seemed appropriate since Windows Phone was invented for her…and me….and  you.  What? You don’t remember that ad?  Before we get started, let’s get that out of the way:

Now, let’s get into my sales pitch.  I’m hoping to welcome another into the WinPham!  Let me know if you think I missed something.

Take Control – A JD Rant (with video)

Slogans have meanings, my friends.  I can tell you that breakfast CAN be the most important meal of the day, but this is not a blog about nutrition.  This is a blog about taking control and motivating yourself to move forward in your career.  It’s all about the #NoExcuses mantra and with this video, I’m not just taking about it, I’m being about it!

One of my motivations was my friend Jenna who I know because she runs a group for on-camera hosts on Facebook.  Proactive, right?  Well, today she took it another step.  She was asking for suggestions for a new DSLR camera, so that she could use that tool to take control of her own career.  This is in the rant, but if you want to follower her awesomeness on Twitter, I got the hookup for you.  Get thee to Twitter and follow @jennatimetweets.  Hit her up with some #NoExcuses props…you know, after you finish with this blog! 🙂

My Red Lumia just got an Indigo Upgrade

Apple should take note…Siri-ously.

Tomorrow users of Windows Phone and Android will get a chance to try out a new app that I’ve been playing with for a few days.  The company, Artificial Solutions, has been innovating NLI (Natural Language Interaction) for other companies’ sites and gadgets, but now is releasing their own Indigo app.  My red Nokia Lumia 920 has been officially upgraded with the presence of this app.

From my testing over the weekend, I’m impressed.  Besides the generally accurate voice recognition and picking up cues from natural speech, which are no slouch, they have already implemented a few tricks that make the app stand out.  Here are two that I find fascinating:

Why I Hate Instagram

As I sit to write this blog entry, the thought strikes me that it is odd to have such an emotional response to a service, especially one that I don’t even use.  Needless to say, since I’m still typing, that those thoughts were quickly squashed in my brain.  To the many that rely on InstaGrime to display your meals in what you think is a quirky, artsy way, I might have to spend a bit more time explaining.  Let’s see if I can filter through the nonsense and get this issue squared away.  See what I did there?

DalyDose of…6 WEEKS!

There are just about 6 weeks left in 2012.  Did you make a bunch of resolutions for yourself that you didn’t keep?  Well, now is the time to tackle those issues and we have apps for that!

I am starting up a goal orientated fitness plan for these last 6 weeks and I challenge/invite you to join me.  DO NOT WAIT for New Year’s to get this done.  Let’s do it now so we can work on bigger, better things in 2013.  Read on to join the challenge. Links to the apps, the plan and a little motivation, after the break.