Blog Archives
My Complaint Email to USDOJ RE: Chase + BofA Anti-Competitive Activity Against Windows Phone
In the last week or so, Microsoft had some really big news with the announcement of Windows 10, HoloLens, and Surface Hub. They were showing true innovation on screens of all sizes and getting good press. The day before the Microsoft event and a couple of days after, something strange happened: Chase and BofA pulled their banking apps from the Windows Phone app store. Considering that they are the headline banks for ApplePay, something seemed a bit fishy to me.
I’ve never written the United States Department of Justice, but I honestly feel like something anti-competitive is being acted on here, with collusion between the banks and Apple. It bothered me so much that I sought out the email to contact the DOJ. Please find that email below.
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.
It’s a Wonderland of Goodness
My friend Melanie’s kids go to this great school called Wonderland, here in Los Angeles. Part of what they do is to give the kids an experience with growing ingredients and making healthy recipes. Why am I droning on? Here’s how it was described to me:
‘Wonderland school is dedicated to providing its students with a quality education. From the Ground Up is the school’s Garden program that informs and teaches students about environmental stewardship and allows them to explore the connectivity of nature’s processes in the garden and the kitchen.’
They’ve filmed some of these tastings before, with parent volunteers, but weren’t sure about this one. Melanie had seen the Lumia devices in action before and contacted me about shooting. Let’s see how that went…
I used both a Lumia 1020 and a Lumia 920. I got a little help from a shotgun microphone plugged in with an XLR to phone adaptor. You will hear that when I used the audio from the phone, that you pick up more of the ambient sound, the children playing.
Here’s the segment on how you can make a citrus salad with freshly harvested rosemary. Be sure to watch in HD.
I can tell you from 1st had experience that this citrus salad is really good. Go ahead and try it at home.
A Nokia Lumia and JD Walk Into A Mall
This blog will be random-palooza. I’ve got pictures and JD observations to share. It will (hopefully) be funny and (hopefully) make you think and (probably) further cement my relationship status on “SINGLE”.
What it won’t be is complaining about how crowded and crazy my trip to the mall was. The Westfield Century Plaza was by all accounts, very pleasant this morning. I drove in and parked pretty close to the escalator and I was in the shopping zone before I knew it.
The music was holiday theme’d, but modern and lovely. There were no crazies, no yelling, no desperate shoppers ruining the experience for everyone. What there were, were painted deer sculptures. Seriously. Stay tuned for that because you KNOW I have pictures.
41MP + JDE = Extended Trial of Nokia Lumia 1020
This innocent looking package made its way to my front door today. Don’t let the external packaging fool you; This package contains leading edge technology from Nokia and Microsoft. This package holds the hardware that I will grasp, learn and manipulate in a content creating frenzy over the next few weeks. This package might as well be Christmas paper because this guy (pointing at myself) is as excited as a kid after a visit from Kris Kringle in late December.
Let’s unwrap the goodness!!
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.
A DalyDose of...Jeff Daly 