5 Things About Technology

It's been a busy tech week around here...

1. I was reading somewhere that you could update your phone online so I thought I would give it a try.  I Googled "how to update Samsung Galaxy S2" and it took me right to the page where I could update my phone for free through Samsung (the software downloads through my computer right to my cell phone which is connected via USB).  I did both hubby's and my phones since they are exactly the same and now my phone works better and with the new software even looks like a new phone!
2. As you could see from my post yesterday, I ended up buying another tablet.  When I returned the previous tablet I saw that Best Buy was selling the Samaung Galaxy Tab 3 7" tablets for $139.  This is a HUGE saving over it's usual price ($199) and also much cheaper than the other tablets I was looking at (Surface, Samsung 10" tablets, etc).  I am SOOO  happy with it!  I made it my "work" tablet so no social media/games/etc on it.  I did download a free Office suite (Kingsoft Office; it allows you to create MS Office compatible documents/Excel/PPT) and a free swype-type keyboard (Touch PalX).  I wrote an entire chapter of my book on it while hubby was bowling today!  At first I thought it would be too small since it is only a couple inches bigger than my cell phone and a 10" tablet seems more work-like but it is perfect.  I hold it in one hand and can swype type with ease.  Also reading Kindle books on it is great too!
3. One thing about buying tech, when you buy one tech item, that purchase often needs additional purchases to make it "complete".  Case in point, hubby bought a soundbar for our TV at the end of last month then when we went to set it up a couple days ago, it needed a special cord to connect it (thus the purchase a couple days ago).  And for my new tablet, since I am sure I am going to keep it and it is a bit fragile, I had to order a cover for it.  The covers are incredibly cheap from Amazon but still, it was an added expense during our no spend month.  I will wait until later to get a memory card for the table as I really don't need one now.
4. As you can tell from the photo, hubby got busy again and made me a padded pocket for the table so I can slip it into my purse without the tablet getting scratched or squished.  Again, reusing a padded mailing envelope that would otherwise have been thrown away.  This definitely saved me a few dollars and gave me piece of mind that the tablet will be protected.
5. Finally, I have been saving a lot of money online lately.  When I get my Baskin Robbins Blast I get the receipt with the drink then by filling out a survey online, I get $1 off my next purchase (perpetually it seems like).  Then I commented on one of my favorite romance writer's blog and she sent me a $10 Amazon gift card!  This went to pay for most of the tablet cover above as I didn't realize that I had to pay for shipping from Amazon (before Christmas Amazon was shipping all items for free).  It still saved me $10 which was great!  Plus I have two more surveys waiting to be done, one for $10 off at Office Depot and one for Albertsons.  I guess taking a couple of minutes to fill out surveys online really pays off!

Daily update:

• Walk:  2 miles (984 more miles to go.  The weather has been perfect and hubby has been walking with me everyday).
• No spend:  Total: $18.06.  $8.01 (Amazon, tablet cover and shipping), $10.05 (Albertsons; 1 lb cheese, 2 dozen eggs, bunch of kale, 4 cinnamon rolls)
• Update this blog: yep
• Update client's blog: yep
• Photo: yep
• Client work: 3 hours today (yeah!)
• Genealogy:  yep (I've got a long list of documents to order, unfortunately all will cost money)
• Non fiction book:  one section
• Fiction book: a whole chapter done on my new tablet!

I Was Going to Tell You About Another Clever Hubby Trick...

Well, I'll tell you anyway...
Yesterday I told hubby I needed a cover for my new tablet, something either very padded or very stiff so it woundn't get squished in my bag.  So with a bit of cardboard and a bit of duct tape (it's a guy thing I guess), he made me this...

Which was perfect.  Until last night when I found that my new tablet wouldn't turn on.  It had a little issue when I first got it--it took forever to charge--so I did a soft reset and that seemed to take care of the problem.  Then last night it wouldn't turn on at all.  I Googled the problem and it came back with 700,000+ results which means A LOT of people have had the same problem.  So I charged it fully then held down the power and volume buttons and it came back to life.  Then it wouldn't shut off!  So I returned it to the store today.  On the positive side, I now have an extra $380.  On the negative side, I don't have a tablet anymore.  Hubby asked if I was going to exchange it but there seems to be quite a few problems with the tablet according to people's online reports.  So I will wait and maybe invest more money for a better product...some time in March after our no spend months.

Daily Update:

• Walk: 6 miles (we did a nice volksmarch downtown this morning.  988 more miles to go!
• No spend: fail.  We spent a total of $47.80. $7 valet and tips at a restaurant (meal was free with comps), $30 hubby's annual ABT bowling membership, $10.80 cable to connect sound bar to TV.
• Update this blog: yep
• Update client's blog: yep
• Put photo on Instagram: yep
• Client work: 1 hour
• Paleo: not really.  Still no wheat or dairy but rice.  I think I will be doing well with this if I keep wheat and dairy out of my diet for the foreseeable future.
• Genealogy: reorganized up to generation 5
• Non fiction book: one section done
• Fiction book: one tiny section done

Broke Down and Got a Tablet Today

I've been thinking about getting a tablet for the longest time.  Researching tablets.  Playing with tablets at Best Buy and Office Depot. (But as you can see from the picture, I haven't even mastered the computer yet...ayayay. I can't get the picture to turn sideways!).
Anyway, I checked the ads this morning and saw that Office Depot had 10" Lenovo tablets on sale for $229 so I broke down and bought one.
I had a number of concerns about getting a tablet:

• Cost was a big factor.  I have been really wanting a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 but they are close to $400(!).  Apple tablets are even more (but I am not an Apple fan so this is kind of a non-issue).  
• Then I was worried that I wouldn't use it.  In theory, I will take it everywhere with me and be able to work anywhere.  In theory.
• Plus it is one more gadget to keep track of.
• I was also wondering if I could ditch my cell phone all together and use this tablet.  It doesn't have a 3g or 4g connection but it does get wifi and most places I go have free wifi...but not all.
• I was even hoping that I could replace my laptop with a tablet.  That would be great!

And after playing with my tablet all day, I have found that:

• You get what you pay for.  While the price was very reasonable and the tablet itself is pretty good, I found that some apps are not configured for Lenovo tablets (I'm guessing I wouldn't have a problem loading these on a Samsung tablet).
• I love the fact that it is so small and portable but it's still big enough so that I can easily read stuff on it.
• It doesn't multitask and nearly all of the work I do on my computer (as opposed to reading the news or using social media) requires both writing and research at the same time.  I also do a lot of formatting documents and I am not sure how feasible this would be on a tablet.
• Ditching my cell phone all together probably won't work that well.  I did put a texting app on it as well as Skype but there will be times (like when we are driving or in the mountains) where if I needed to make a phone call I would be out of luck.

In conclusion:

• I can return the tablet within fourteen days if I don't like it (this may, in fact, happen).
• On the other hand, I have wanted to get hubby a tablet so he may get this one if I decide I want to pay more for a better tablet and decide to buy the Galaxy.
• I will play with this tablet for a couple more days and figure out if there are any good ways to really use the tablet for work.
• I will also consider getting another type of tablet (like a Surface or an Envy which I understand can multitask and use MS Office programs, etc) which is a little more "computer-ish" and a little less "tablet-ish".