Alex Kidman

Things were so much easier when I picked subject lines based on what I was listening to at the time. Still, the above subject line does make sense. Of a sort.

Firstly, the T-Shirts, over at PC Authority, where I’ve looked over Internode’s new “T-Shirt” 1TB broadband plans:

Internode enters the 1TB race with “T-Shirt” plans: “Internode’s new “T-Shirt” plans offer up to a tantalising 1TB of data. But will they cost you the shirt off your back? We investigate the real value.”

And then over at MacTheMag, my regularly weekly blog considers the exact details of Apple’s new product offerings, by working out how much choice is included. Fifty Cent makes a guest appearance, as apparently Apple’s new Ping social network figures I should follow him. Which I guess goes to prove that Ping may be many things, but a Genius it is not.

MacTheBlog: Please, Apple, can I have less? “The confetti has been swept up, Chris Martin has vanished off to … well … wherever it is Chris Martin vanishes off to when he’s not performing, and what we’re left with is, to my appraisal, not all that satisfactory. To put some specifics to this, it seems that Apple’s gone all out to remove elements of choice.”

You know that whole idea of a work/life balance? Right at the moment, mine’s so tilted it’s essentially a work/work balance with the life hanging onto an edge somewhere by the very tips of its fingers. In fact, I think I just heard it scream as it inevitably let go.

Inbetween running a household and running after three kids and supporting an overworked prac student (who happens to be the woman I love), I’m also writing. A lot.

From what could be called my regular assignments, there’s a MacTheMag blog entry:

MacTheBlog: A support issue: “It was at this point that I remembered the only other person I know of that readily identifies himself as a Genius. That would be Wile. E. Coyote, and I’m well aware of the success rate of his plans.”

At Geekspeak, musings on the use of a 1TB broadband plan:

Geekspeak: What can you do with 1TB of data? “What 1TB does buy you is a fair amount of security…”

At CNET.com.au, even more iPhone 4 cases have been tested:

30 best and worst iPhone 4 cases: “It’s raining iPhone cases around here, so we’ve added more to our original story, bumping up the case count from 25 to 30. More choice is good, right?”

And that’s not getting on to the other big writing task for the week as I take up a guest editor role at Gizmodo Australia. In just two days, I’ve written the following stories:

Breakfast Wrap: Best Of The Weekend
Vodafone/Three Pump Up Contract Data Caps
Telstra Unveils Ultimate Wireless USB
Get Your Kicks (On Your Wave) On Route 66
The Best Free WiFi Is Fast Free WiFi
Breakfast Wrap: Best Of Monday Night
Internode Fetches IPTV For Early Adopters
Even Apple’s Making The iPod Refresh Obvious Now
Confirmed: Xbox Live Price Increase Isn’t Coming Nov 1
Is This The Ugliest iPad Stand Ever?
Nice Power Brick. But Will It Fly?

And it’s still only Tuesday. The week is still young, even if I’m not.

Today, it’s all about data, data, data and waves. First up at Hydrapinion, I opined about the odd nature of Optus’ latest data promotion:

Hydrapinion: Half price data pricing makes half as much sense: “I mean, really, which sounds better to you — the ‘fake’ 4 to 8c per MB, or the actual 0.5-1c per MB?”

I’m not done with data analysis yet, though, as Internode’s announced changes to its broadband plans go under the analytical hammer at PC Authority:

How do Internode’s new mega-allowance plans stack up? “How do Internode’s new plans compare to Telstra’s recent drastic price drops? We crunch the numbers to assess the real value.”

And then finally at Geekspeak, I go over the basics of Google’s soon-to-be-defunct Wave product:

Geekspeak: Waving Goodbye: “Not every tech product is an instant hit, even when it’s backed by a big brand name.”

The sweat is just down to Sydney’s always appalling humidity today. The other stuff? Two reviews, live today at CNET.com.au:

Internode MiFi: “Internode’s MiFi 3G modem/router works quite well, but carrier issues and high pricing are a big downside.”

Samsung Q320: “Samsung’s Q320 impresses us on most levels, except for the critical issue of battery life.”

And now back to the sweating.

I’m doing an Alison-Moyet-Listening day today, as you might be able to tell. But hey, on the on the subject of words, I have plenty published today. First of all, at APCMag.com:

Mobile Firefox coming to Nokia: “Ambitious plans will see Firefox mobile ported to Symbian Smartphones, possibly by as early as April next year.”

Internode offers ADSL2+ across “entire Telstra ADSL footprint” “Internode now has the same ADSL2+ coverage as Telstra, but will “stop customers hurting themselves” by signing on to a Telstra-based service if there is any other option.”

Now, if you’re more of the listening type, there’s also my final podcast contribution to Australian Macworld, in which I pontificate on ISP trials, iPod Touch Battery life and gaming, and the world’s biggest Mac fan. Surprisingly, it isn’t Steve Jobs.

Episode 45 — The downfall of Capitalist Democracy “MJCP, Danny Gorog, Tony Williams and Alex Kidman discuss broadband plans, internet filtering, legal action against ISPs, HandBrake 0.9.3, Bloom for iPhone, and why capitalism and democracy don’t work.

Yeah, I know. The subject lines — they’re not making a whole lot of sense. Blame my overall lack of sleep, which is even more wretched than usual.

It does have its strange upside; as my brain struggles to stay awake, it also writes at a furious pace, as witnessed by these couple of stories today, both at PC Authority.

SSDs move closer to replacing HDDs: “Company claims SSDs that are “100% interchangeable” with HDDs. We want one in our notebook, we really do, but the price still stings…”

Internode chops ADSL prices: “But what’s the best deal on the block? Internode’s new plans are good for Usenet, but we’ve found some better deals out there…”