Terminator Salvation - Avoid it.

Watching the movie was like watching 4 fellows playing Unreal(or Quake), firing guns and ammo, killing each other, from beginning till the end. No story, just guns. This was perhaps the 1st movie of my life that gave me headache at the end of it. 

Each of the earlier terminator movies had a plot, a plot that was somewhat real. The 1st Terminator had Sarah Connor's story, the 2nd one was John's. The 3rd one was John's love story and while it wasn't as touching as the earlier two, it was still decent. But the 4th installment just screwed everything up. Well I guess the producers and Director and the script writers thought that the Terminator Movies are popular because of the blaring guns, the fire, and deaths. They couldn't have got it wrong more than that.  

Chritian Bale seemed confused as if thinking : "Dude I am Batman ! What am I doing here! And now that I am here, should I act funny and energetic as John Connor has been shown over the years, or should I be quite and reserve as Batman would be. Hell, I am Batman. Lets keep a low profile!"

I am sure there would be more terminator installments : one where they will show John sending his dad back to save his mom(T-I), another where John will send Arnie back to save his ass (T-II), another one where John will die and his girl will send Arnie to save both of then (T-III). And if all that the script writers have to offer for those installments is guns and bombs, they better stop writing those because I feel the audience is not gonna take another installment of this same crap that was served in T-IV. 

Somebody get James Cameron back on board, and if Arnie is in as well, it would surely be worth it. 

Otherwise, I probably will give those installments the same rating that I give Terminator Salvation. AVOID IT. If you can't then wait for the DVD and rent it. Its not worth spending 10 $ per head. 

My Next Phone

What’s my ideal phone like?

For a while now (which is over an year now), I have been planning to upgrade my phone to something newer, trendier and more useful. So what's delaying it? I want a (smart)phone, that would rid me of carrying any other electronic device on myself on a normal day. Here's what I think is critical for me:

1. The most basic need: It should be a phone. I should be able to make/receive calls :)
   
2. High Speed Internet support: 3G / HSDPA, so that I am 'always connected'.
   
3. Wi-Fi Support.
   
4. The phone should be usable as a modem as well in case I want to connect to the net.(I know that depends on the service provider too)
   
5. Bluetooth: for wireless talking and possibly attaching to the car stereo system
   
6. QWERTY keyboard: that's a must for me. I love the touch of 'real' keys.
   
7. (A)GPS: for finding my way when I am lost.
   
8. An expansion slot. A huge memory (think 8/16/32GB) will be a plus.
   
9. A good Camera (>3.2 mp with flash – vibration reduction desirable and so is zoom). Video recording support...I love taking pictures but don't want to carry around a camera all the time. Videos are a necessity too for capturing those 'once in a lifetime' moments.
   
10. A good screen resolution(pretty much everyone has this)
    
11. Exchange/pop/imap mail support. Office documents support. 
    
12. Support for playing videos in diff formats. Should support flash.
    
13. User Interface: Touchscreen for basic needs like dialing numbers, receiving calls, viewing pictures etc. Coverflow, multitouch is good but not a necessity.
    
14. Good Music Output with music output option(through FM transmitter, maybe )
    
15. Desirable: dual camera (video conferencing).
    
16. Replaceable battery.
    

I can add a few more, but I think this pretty much covers everything I am looking for (and that’s also pretty much the order in which I need it).
What's missing in today’s phone? A few things that come to my mind right away:

Apple iPhone: QWERTY/Bluetooth/Video/Camera resolution/expansion slot.

Sony XPERIA: RAM / Accelerometer / its Windows :( . Moreover, for some reason, I didn't find it very charming when I took it in my hands(although at one point of time, I was quite excited about it)

Blackberries: Camera/Music

Palm Pre: Closest to perfect : The best so far. I have used a Treo for 2 years, and I totally trust Palm products. However, the absence of expansion port is troubling given that I seem to exaust off memory pretty fast ( probably because of my love for pictures and videos). I will have to research a bit on the USB expansion option though.

Nokia N97: The challenger round the corner. So far, it appears to have everything I am looking for. Moreover its a Nokia, so quality should not be an issue(although Nokia isn't much present in the touchscreen world). Moreover, if it really has the FM transmitter that's being talked about, it's going to be awesome. :)


At this time, I think it will be wise for me to wait for N97. It may not be having the touch capabilities of iPhone, but as you would realize from my needs above, I need a phone that 'works' for me and not just looks good. Looks are passé.

N97: I am waiting for you.

Singapore Botanical Gardens

I had been to Singapore Botanical Gardens today. It's a huge garden that's a very popular hangout for families. With a lot of greenery and open space, it gives kids a lot of place to run around too! :) There are a couple of lakes and artificial waterfalls as well to add to the beauty of the garden. There's an open auditorium too where events are organised from time to time. But the best part of the Gardens is the "National Orchid Garden" 

National Orchid Garden has been developed as a separate sub-part of the Botanical Gardens that primarily has a large varities of Orchids. The garden has been very beautifully organised. There are a few fountains, sculptures etc that add to the beauty. There are some sections created within that highlight special kinds of Orchids: eg: the Coolhouse houses the orchids that grow in cool places.  The Mist house has the 'summary' of best orchids grown in the Orchid Garden. The ergonomics of the place are well designed to have seats/water fountains/restrooms etc within reach should you feel the need for one. There are many photo points that have been setup specifically so that visitors can get nice snaps clicked with the Orchids. 

I spent a couple of hours there and thoroughly enjoyed the time amongst the flowers, not to mention the opportunity this gave me to click another bunch of snaps :)

If you are ever in Singapore, keep the National Orchid Garden on your agenda for sure. Oh btw, there's an entry ticket of SGD 5. 

Next on the list is : Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. Let's see if I make it to the place tomorrow.