Anyone with bad timing that signed a contract with AT&T after June 1st is going to have one hell of a shock when it comes to their early termination fee.  The new early termination fee has been raised from $175 to $325!  Holy crap.  AT&T’s ridiculous explanation:

The idea is, and we think that it’s fair approach, that if you spend less on a device, your early termination fee should be less. If you spend more, your early termination fee should be more.

Time to jump ship while the going is possible.  If you decide to stick around, I hope you’re in for the long haul.  To add insult the injury, they also have a new BS plan regarding ETF:

For customers who enter into new two-year service agreements in connection with the purchase of our more advanced, higher end devices, including netbooks and smartphones, the ETF will increase to $325, and be reduced by $10 for each month that you remain with us as a customer during the balance of your two-year service agreement. After that, the ETF will no longer apply.

Although I am currently using a Google Nexus One, an unlocked device, I am stuck in the grasp of AT&T for at least another year.  Sucks to be me…and you after June!

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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RIM has released this commercial to showcase some improved features, looks SWEET:

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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Yes, 2040!  That is the year that will mark the end of the cellphone cancer testing comprised of 250,000 volunteers in the UK, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Finland.  The study will cost approx. $10 million and hopes to have a definitive  answer after the 20-30 year term.

Dr. Tolendano:

“Previous studies have looked at usage for less than 10 years and focused mainly on retrospective use. They’ve had a short observation period from the start and only been able to focus on brain cancers. We’ll be prospectively monitoring mobile phone use and prospectively looking at any health developments”

Other than cancer, the study will look for links to MS, Parkinson’s, headaches, tinnitus and depression.

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

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Although one of the last one’s up to the plate, BB 6.0 will FINALLY integrate multitouch.  Another overdue feature include a revved up browser bundled with tab switching and updated favorites.

More Features:

• Updated media player with swipe browsing ala the iPhone
• Kinetic scrolling with rubber banding
• Pinch to zoom in/out
• Customizable home screen
• Updated photos app with flick navigation
• Universal search

I’m sure BB users will be excited about this pretty significant update.  Many new features will be welcomed by those who grow bored of the current lack of features on their BB devices.

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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Alot of App creators release a “lite” or free version so that a user can test out the software before he/she buys.  I know from experience that it is a pain getting a refund for an App via the iPhone, however, Android has a “return/get refund” option if you see the App sucks within 24 hours.

If you have an App that you would like to suggest users download, or would like an App reviewed, please let us know.

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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A little time passed, and Google announced a version of the device that was now compatible with AT&T 3G, I paid a little more attention to the device.  The more research I did, the more impressed I was with which is considered the “most powerful and fastest smart phone to date”.  I placed my order around 3:00 pm via www.google.com/phone, and had the device in my hands by 11:00 am the next day, thanks to the free FedEx overnight shipping.  I ignored the free engraving Google was offering, as the 7-10 day wait was just not an option.

I opened the box, powered on the device, and was truly blown away.  Within a few hours, this had easily become the best smart phone I had ever owned.  Yes, and I apologize to my friends, more so than the iPhone.  Here’s why:

Hardware:

Holding the Nexus One is very comfortable and feels sturdy.  The smooth edges and gray/black combo make this an attractive device.

Although the devices utilizes “cloud synchronizing” via Google, there is a micro USB port on the bottom that is used for PC connectivity and charging.  There are also volume buttons and a main power button to wake or power down your unit.

Similar to the Blackberry device, the Nexus One is equipped with a trackball.  In the week or so of using the unit, I used it once and it was just to see what it would do.  In my opinion, this additional hardware is a waste of space and functionally, and will never be used.

Inside the Nexus One, the Snapdragon CPU from Qualcomm powers the experience raising the bar to a whole new level.  512MB of both RAM and ROM leave some disappointed again with internal storage.  My unit shipped with a 4GB microSD card, which was quickly upgraded to 8GB out of my Blackberry.

The display is stunningly rich and bright.  It is an AMOLED (Active-matrix organic light-emitting diode or AMOLED) touch screen with 480×800 resolution.  The Nexus One also contains a proximity sensor, an accelerometer and a light sensor for dimming the screen if selected.  WiFi capabilities bundle up the deal nicely.

Other than the Snapdragon, there is nothing groundbreaking or new here, but the phone seems pleasantly responsive nonetheless.

Software:

The Nexus One ships with the Android 2.1 OS.  Not having much experience with Android, I still felt I needed to set the bar high…I was not let down.  It is HIGHLY customizable and just plain fun to use.  Unlike the iPhone, Android allows multiple applications to run at once…this is an awesome feature which feeds “widgets” that live on your screen updating 24 hours a day.

The introduction of “live wallpaper” is a neat idea for a minute, but not practical and distracted me from what I was doing.  One live wallpaper is water than when touched on the screen will ripple and move nearby floating leaves.  After tinkering with live wallpaper,  I switched to a still background almost immediately after setting up my device.

I thought about creating a video so that our readers can see Android 2.1 in action on the Nexus One, by why recreate the wheel:

Voice Quality:

The voice quality on the incoming calls is decent, however, not the best or loudest I have ever heard.  One nice addition is a noise-canceling feature, which is a lifesaver for the person on the other line.  There are two microphones built into the phone, one near your mouth, and one on the back of the device.  All of the incoming noise via the back microphone (noisy traffic, people near you, etc) is canceled while your voice is amplified for clear conversation, the feature works very well.  The only downside of this feature so far is resting the phone on your shoulder covers the back microphone and converts your voice to that of a robot (from what I’m told).

Camera:

The camera on the Nexus One is pretty impressive.  It’s 5-megapixel lens and flash took crisp, detailed images shown here.  The office photo shows off the inside capabilities while the outside shows, well, outside.  These images are scaled way down due to size.

The camera application loads MUCH faster than most other smart phone camera apps.  With my iPhone and Blackberry Bold, I was losing the “perfect photo opp” waiting for the app to load.  All around a nice camera that finally gives a reason to leave the “point and shoot” camera at home.

Apps:

Apple really set the bar with an amazing and user friendly App Store.  Although the Apple App Store boasts an insane 150,000+ apps, the Android Marketplace only has 30,000+ at press time.

The games in my opinion are of equal quality, and prices are around the same on each platform.  I have downloaded a handful of fun and productive games and apps, however, could not find a decent golf scorecard/GPS/do everything I need it to do app via the Android Marketplace as I easily did via the Apple App Store.  The Marketplace is still young, and holds a lot of promise for great apps moving forward.

Cost:

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I am very happy with this device thus far, it has met and exceeded my expectations.  Having gone though more smart phone devices than anyone I know, this is by far one of the, if not, the best one I have used.  I highly recommend this device and am excited to see where the Android OS will go from here.

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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Here is a simple solution that is almost so simple, we would have never thought of it – the “binder clip cord management system”:

As the picture shows, grab a few binder clips out of the free-for-all company cabinet, and feed your cords through.  Attached the clip to the edge of your desk, and “wa-la”, a perfect solution for those fallen cables!

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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The reSTART Internet Addiction Recovery Program specializes in treatment for internet, gaming, texting and video game excessive use.  I myself have known relationships that have been torn apart due in part to World of Warcraft and excessive gameplay.  South Park did a parody on this game, and it was strikingly realistic!

Pricing starts at $14,500 for 45-day treatment and $27,000 for 90-day treatment – this does NOT include a $200 application fee, an $800 2-day screening interview fee and an $200 airport pick-up fee!

Our professionally trained clinicians understand technology related behavioral addictions, and the impact such conditions have on a person’s life. We work with individuals, couples and families to help them better understand and recover from an Internet, Video Gaming or Technology related behavioral addiction, as they reconnect with what’s important and meaningful in their lives.

Counseling Program Services available include:

• Thorough individualized assessments
• Clinically designed programs tailored to meet individual needs
• Individual counseling with professionally trained staff
• Group counseling and psychotherapy
• Life skills and vocational coaching
• Mindfulness based stress reduction programs and group-work
• 12-step meetings and spiritual recovery

We invite you to meet with one of our clinicians for an assessment and development of an individualized treatment plan to help you or someone you care about, learn to manage, and in many cases overcome, a behavioral addiction.

With that said, I highly doubt insurance will cover any of this.  Today only, PCQuikFix is running a special – for the low low price of $2,500, we will send a PCQuikFix technician to your home to remove any and all power cords associated with your video game consoles…problem solved!

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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ÜberTwitter is a company devoted to delivering highly functional Twitter clients for mobile devices. Our first product is ÜberTwitter for the BlackBerry line of mobile phones. We are very excited about the opportunity to provide BlackBerry users with a full featured Twitter client which will include:

• Integrated ability to upload pictures to a site dedicated to serving ÜberTwitter users
• Ability to optionally update your Google Talk status with your last tweet, making your tweets reach a wider audience than just people following you on Twitter
• Automatically update your location based on the cell tower information provided by your phone, no GPS hardware required, click here for an example
• Send videos embedded in your tweet
• See everyone who is tweeting near you

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Jeremy Gibson | PCQuikFix

Computer & Electronic Repair Solutions
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So what is the scoop on Poynt? The Poynt application helps you find people, businesses, restaurants, gas stations and movie theaters. You can call the restaurant or theater in just one click, look up their website, use a map to help locate the business. You can even book movie tickets and dinner reservations, add it to your calendar and invite friends. The app uses your location (using GPS) to pinpoint what is near you. One of the cool features is you can search for the cheapest and closest gas station to you. It is a very easy to use, has a simple layout and useful app.