ROSHOGOLLAS AND INTERNET ON "B"HODA-FONE , ANYONE ? :-)

Being a Bengali, often subjects you to misconceptions .... like ....

1. The allegation that you eat fish all the time (We are not eternal Piscevores ...Spare us please !!! )

2.  After the movie "Kahaani" was released ...I have been pestered with cat-calls of "Bidaaa Madam" ... (Not all of us have Roshogollas in our mouths while speaking :-(   )

and lastly....

3. The gaff that insinuates that we Bengalis "EAT" everything...including water... (DO NOT punish me for my ancestor's lingual errors)

If you are wondering how the above mentioned laments are related to Mobile Internet / Vodafone and are already making me out to be a crazy loony toon ... then let me stop you right there and tell you about a "BAA-N-GALI" parody that underscored the fact that Mobile Internet was Fun-Tastic to say the least...

It all began on a lazy evening in the Satellite city of Navi Mumbai, when I was regretting my decision of shaving off my goatee, when my Phone blared out....

My grandfather (whom I address as Dadu and who addresses me as "nanaji" ) let out a large snort akin to the one he reserves for Mamata's Banerjee's goof-ups and Sourav Ganguly's fielding bloopers ("He jaa-aast caaaant field, tha-aat one !! ")  and hollered out ,"I weeel throw your phone out of the window...Even the prime minister of India d-aaa-s not get as many calls as you do "...

To this I flashed a smile that would floor any woman (at-least that is what I felt) and sat down next to my mother and my grand-father on the bed along with my iPhone and my iPad...

I placed the iPad in front of my Mother and introduced it with a flourish ... "This is the iPad...."

"Ehhh ??? ", she said , "Is this a three dimensional mouse-pad? "

I mentally bashed my head on Chris Gayle's biceps five times over and then turned to my mom with another charming smile on my face...

  "This is a tablet Mamoni !!! Its a very smart device and it lets you have fun ", I said...

"You mean that it helps you waste time ..." , she retorted...

"Wait...", I quickly downloaded Angry Birds from the Vodafone Vstore onto my iPad  and observed my Grandfather's and Mother's faces as the iPad merrily chirped away the trademark opening tune...

"Hehehehehehehe....", along came my younger brother and plonked his tiny Angry Bird stuffed toy on my iPad... I captured the moment with my iPhone and uploaded it instantly on Facebook ,not realising that my friends would declare it to be one of the most iconic pictorial mobile uploads in their lifetime...

"What ees this ??", queried my grandfather in a tone similar to Darth Vader (Star Wars)...

"Ever plucked mangoes out of trees with your catapult in your village, when you were a young boy?", I asked. 

"Yes, I de-eed", he remarked cautiously...

"Well then ... give this a go", I smiled and slid it over to him .. He watched with amazement as I showed him how to topple the green hobogoblins and monkeys over...

Ten minutes later, my Grandfather was sitting up on the bed with his knees drawn close to his chest and fingers blazing away on the iPad while my mother was firing away on all cylinders on my iPhone...

"Moni...I have finished th-ee-s level as well", my grandfather bellowed. "Wait a moment Bapi", my mother responded, " I am almost done as well"..

I was trembling with laughter from the inside...To see these two grown-ups , who were severely critical of my "smart-devices", just a few moments ago, have so much fun while using them , was a sight that could most certainly NOT be purchased with a MasterCard...

Suddenly my iPhone beeped and the following screen popped up...

"Who is this Deepika ??? ", my Mother roared like a lioness, "And is that a baby ??? Whose baby is this ?? "

"Girlfriend...girlfriend !!!" , my brother squeaked, dancing about like the little Vodafone pug....

"Shut up...", I whispered..."She is my friend Mamoni", I gulped...

"What a pretty little baby ...This is her niece and this is an online Application called Whatsapp ! It helps me chat with my friends and share pictures, music and other stuff"

By then my Grandfather's interest had been piqued and he was bending over my phone to investigate who this Deepika really was...

"By the way Mom, do you want to create an e-mail ID ? " I ventured, trying to divert the topic away from my girl-friend and the CBI style inquisitions..

My Mom smiled " You dont have to be shy son..I know who she is...She is the one you stay up talking all night to ..  :-) "

"Yeah !!!", I blanched... "Vodafone ...Cheap local calling..." I blabbered... Sheesh !!! My mom could give Sherlock a run for his money...

I then sat down with her and via my Gmail App .... created my mom's first e-mail ID - supertuhina@gmail.com

I placed my hands over her hands and helped her slowly type out her very first e-mail to her friend Kalpana..

This was what she wrote :

Hi Kalpana,

I am writing this mail to you using my son's i-pad. Please e-mail me on this address from now on.. Are onions and tomatoes cheaper in the market near your place. Do let me know. How are your husband and in-laws doing ?

Lots of Love,

Tuhina

:-)

After she ended with a smiley and pressed the "send' button, she looked at me, grinning from ear to ear and said, "Wow ...this was fun :-) "

"Oh Yeah Mom !! You just echoed the topic that might help me win a MacBook and enjoy the rest of my life watching movies on it with my head on Deepika's lap", I thought...

"What eeees theeees ? "...My grandfather's exclamation, jerked me out of my pleasant reverie and made me pay attention to him.... 

I shuffled over to him , only to notice that his was pointing at the DLF-IPL icon...

"Oh this ??", I said non-chalantly, "this is an application that gives you ball-by-ball updates and streams the match live onto my phone".

"The Match ??? Li-bh-e??? On theee-eees?", he asked...his eyes wide with wonderment..

I launched the application and was faced with a familiar situation ten minutes later..
My grandfather was sitting on his haunches as usual and hurling the choicest abuses at Ganguly...

"He let this ball go through...bhhetw-eeeen his leeee-ggs...Stupeee-eed fool", my grandfather ranted..
He then looked up from the mobile screen and smiled at me "Theees eees fun :-) "

I desperately pushed the recurring images of me, with my head on Deepika's lap along with my fantasy prize (The Macbook), out of my head, and smiled back at him.." Of Course it is :-) "

"Let me show you something else folks...", I announced.

I rushed over to the kitchen...handed the iPad over to my bewildered Grandmother, launched Skype, instructed her to keep staring at it and then rushed back...gathered my mom and grandfather before the iPhone and launched Skype...I screamed at my younger brother to help my grandmother accept the call...

"Hello Tulu !!!!! (my grandmother's nick-name) " , my grandfather squealed...gawking at delight on seeing my grandmother, who almost dropped the i-Pad out of fright, "Are you cooooking feee-eeesh? "

We all had a hearty laugh while my younger brother explained stuff to my nervous grandmother (so that she would'nt start believing that the India TV's Baba's words were true...)

" I now have a gift for you Dadu !! " I intoned...

"Whae eee-ees it ?" he asked..

I moved quickly...as quick as a cheetah...and downloaded a song from the Vodafone Gallery (can you believe it...?? Just for Re 1 ??????) and played it over my phone's speakers...

The notes of the song "Ekla Cholo Re" floated across the room in Amitabh's baritone....

"Aaaaaah " said my grandfather with his eyes closed ... "Oooomi-taaa-bh er ki gola !!!!" (which when translated into English means "What a good voice Amitabh has !! " )

While he was lost in the song, I downloaded the Adobe Ideas app on my iPad and taught my mom how to draw using her fingers...It was as if she had rediscovered her childhood again :-)

This is what she drew :-)

My Grandfather on the other hand smartly took the iPad from her hand and dedicated the following masterpiece to me :-)\

(What he meant what that I had forgotten to pay him my Society's monthly fee which was charged for my Bike Parking privileges)

"Talking of money...", I said ,"Here is how I am going to make you rich today", I told my grandfather...

He gawked as I transferred his monthly grocery expenses via net-banking and whispered ,"eee-ees it safe ?" into my ear...

"Bhel", he said , after we were getting up to have dinner, "Nanaji, theee-ees was fun...we should do it more often :-) ...Here...have a Roshogolla !! " , he said, with a twinkle in his eye, "Your Bhoda-fone connection seems to be good".

"Its "V"odafone Dadu !!", I said, "Not "Bho"dafone :-)"

"But that is what I said ...Bhodafone", replied my Grandfather quizzically.

"Never mind", I smiled and said as we left for dinner..

BTW..This is what I drew on my turn :-) ["Is this a jooojoo?", my grandfather asked. " No its a "ZooZoo"..", I remarked ]

Now, if your Bengali grandfather says "eeet eees fun "...I can assuredly say that "Mobile internet on Bhodafone ees fun :-) "

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you doubt a Bengali blogger (and his family's) sanity..please "bhi"sit   www.vodafone.in/fun


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Images - Internet is fun on Vodafone : Courtesy - Vodafone

This post has been submitted as a part of the "Internet is fun" on Vodafone contest , powered by Vodafone and Indiblogger.

AROUND MY "V"ORLD IN 80 MINUTES....

"The only reason why people get lost in thought, is because it is unfamiliar territory"

This was more or less my predicament before I was inducted into the world of mobile Internet and before I undertook that fun-filled journey that changed my "V"orld  forever.

I will now undertake the task of assigning names to all the characters in my plot, a little differently from what Jules Vernes assigned to his motley group of thrill-seekers in his book "Around the World in 80 days".

1. Myself : Silly-eous Dog  [SD]   (Phileas Fogg - in the original novel) - Owns an iPhone.

2. Nagarajan Parasuraman : Pass-the-ball-out   [PB]   (Passepartout - in the original novel) - Owns a Nokia Lumia.

3. Deepika Shrivastava : Aao-na   [AN]  (Aouda - in the original novel) - Owns a Nokia C3.

(Left to right : Pass-the-ball-out, Aao-na, Silly-eous Dog)

(P.S : So that it becomes easier for you to visualise the story :-D )

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6:00 PM - Sunday

Silly-eous Dog and his faithful accomplice, Pass-the-ball-out, are engaged in a "serious" game of Kick-my-Boss, on their mobile phones while sipping on Bournvita.

SD : Hahahahaha ... Look Pass-the ball-out,  I have cut my boss into tiny pieces using a Samurai Sword...

PB :  I have bettered you Sir, I have punctured him using millions of pins and have given him the most horrible wedgie ever hahahahahahaha

SD : Cheers Pass-the-Ball out !!!!

[Tries to clink glasses, but ends up spilling the drink onto Pass-the-ball-out's pink pants]

PB : Damn Sir !!! To clean Brown stains on pink pants is a feat as impossible as removing Sachin Tendulkar from the current Indian Team.

SD :  Enough Pass-the-ball-out...I am fed up of your Sachinisms !!! [Goes for a violent swig of Bournvita , but discovers that he has spilt all of it]  BTW, any idea of what the score is ?

PB : Just a moment Sir... [Checks the score using the Cricbuzz app] Mumbai Indians are on top Sir !! Sachin has scored a fifty !!!

SD : Hehehehehe [Gloats gleefully]

Suddenly Justin Bibier's "Baby" blares out from Silly-eous Dog's phone..... 

PB : Is this your new ring tone Sir ?

SD : Yes, I downloaded it last night, amazingly fast...Vodafone's download speeds are great !!!

PB : [sniggers and snorts into his Bournvita] Baby indeed....

SD : [conversing with Aao-na]  Hello....yes....Hi Aao-na :-) ....I am at home...What? You want a green jade neck-piece?...But the only two neck-pieces I know about are the hang-man's noose and my bachelor's tie...I was only joking Dear...Of course, I am not crazy...My Mother had me tested !!! You need it in 80 minutes ??? Why ??? Oh !! So that loon is celebrating her birthday tonight... No No No No No Dear !!! Did you hear loon ?? I said "boon"...I meant , "What a boon that she is celebrating her birthday tonight !!!" I ' ll get it for you in 80 minutes flat, don't you worry...bbye..."

PB :  I understand that we have a quest ahead of us..

SD : Yes indeed !!! my faithful accomplice...There will be a day when mankind will fall in the search for green jade necklaces ...but not today...There will be a day when wolves will howl...but not this day !!!! There will be....

PB : [Interrupts] Sir, is this Shakespeare ?

SD : No Pass-the ball-out !! This is Aaragorm's speech from Lord of the Rings- Return of the King..I was downloading it from YouTube..Here..Have a peek..

PB : Extremely good picture quality Sir !! and may I add, what fast downloading speeds !!!

SD : What did you expect ? Its Vodafone 3G! I told you so :-) Now lets get cracking...we need to find a green jade necklace and buy it !

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6:10 PM

SD : [Screaming] COME OUT OF THE BATHROOM PASS-THE-BALL-OUT !!! HOW LONG ARE YOU GOING TO TAKE ???????

PB : Something is wrong with the Bournvita Sir !! [groans]

[Silly-eous's phone beeps]

SD : Hmmmm... A Whatsapp message from Aao-na... Hmmmm... So this is what the neckpiece should resemble [Looks at the image and scratches his head] Cool...atleast I know what to refer to :-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6:20 PM

SD : [Screaming] HOW MUCH LONGER ???

PB : Let me put on a pair of jeans atleast!! You have ruined my pink pants if your memory fails you Sir ! I' ll be as quick as Sachin between the wickets !!

SD : [bellows] I' LL KILL YOU !!!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6:30 PM

SD : Thank goodness, we are finally outside ! I ll just check Google Maps to find a jewellery or trinket store ! [grumbles] Sports Stores and Grocery Stores I can handle but this.... [shivers] Aaahh !!! We are in luck, there is one in Sector 29...Hurry Pass-the-Ball-out !!! [Kisses his phone]

PB : I just checked the bus routes on Google Sir !!! Bus number 529 should plonk us right in the heart of action...

SD : [affectionately / grudgingly ] Sometimes you amaze me Pass-the-Ball-out :-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 6:40 PM

SD : How long is this infernal bus ride going to last ???? And what exactly are you upto Pass-the-ball-out??

PB : Am ordering a pair of pink pants online Sir ! Its so easy n fun n convenient ! 

SD : [grumbles] You and your pink pants !!!!! By the way...you are sitting on a wad of bubblegum that someone left sticking to your seat...

PB : AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH !!!!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6:45 PM

SD : [rushing into the shop] Hurry up Pass-the-ball-out !!! Excuse me Sir ! Would you be having a neck-piece that looks something like this picture ?   

SHOPKEEPER : Of Course ! We have this piece packaged and imported from Hong-Kong. 300 rupees Sir ....

SD : Hmmm... Are you sure about the price ?

SHOPKEEPER :  Yes Sir ! you wont find a cheaper piece in any of the surrounding shops...

Silly-eous fiddles with his phone...

PB : What are you up to Sir ?

SD : [whispers] Keep him distracted..I am downloading an app...

PB : [whispers] Okay... [loudly] Is there a shop that sells pink pants around here ?

SHOPKEEPER : Ehhh ?????

SD : Shut up Pass-the-ball-out !! Am done with the downloading !! [mutters] Vodafone 3G jai ho !! [turns to the Shopkeeper ] Well my dear friend...could you hand me the box ?

The shopkeeper hands over the packed neck-piece box to Silly-eous who scans the box with his cell..

SD : You are a convincing liar... I ll give you that :-) I scanned your box bar-code with this amazing app called RedLaser  and found out that the MRP is Rs 180 only :-) Do you think that I am a doodle in pink pants to fall for your lies and your custom made MRP sticker??? eh ??? [shows the cell to the shopkeeper]

SHOPKEEPER : [gulps and surrenders meekly] So sorry Sir !!! Take it for Rupees 150 but please dont bad-mouth our shop !!!!

SD : Hmmmm...Deal...Gift wrap the box please !!!!

PB : Sir !! You are a genius !! This is so cool !!! It was so much fun looking at the shopkeeper's face !!

SD : I try Pass-the-ball-out... I try :-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

7:00 PM (20 minutes from zero hour)

SD : All is lost Pass-the-ball-out !!! We cant reach Aao-na's place in time.... No bus can reach her house within 20 minutes and there is not a single auto-rickshaw to be seen...I will be slaughtered [weeps] I have failed!! I am ruined....

PB : Worry not Sir !! I have summoned a cool cab :-) Apparently there is an app to check whether there are any cabs in the vicinity and summon them to your location. The cab is already on its way :-) Infact...there it is :-)

SD : If there was a noble prize for an accomplice, I would cover it with pink confetti and offer it to you right away :-) Let us clink ibeers :-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  

7:15 PM

SD : Well, we are almost there :-) What a fun-filled day Pass-the-ball-Out :-) Our Vodafone powered Mobile Internet has been of great help...has it not ? :-)

PB :  Of course Sir ! But there are two things it did not help us with... 1. Manchester United lost the title and 2. You have forgotten the neck-piece at the shop....just like Sachin kept missing out on his hundredth hundred !!! there are no apps for these disasters :-)

SD : [hollers] PASS-THE-BALL-OUT !!! YOU INFERNAL BUFFOON !!!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  

"You will be served better if you are reading this blog post on your mobile device as I have written it via one :-) "

This blog post has been submitted as an entry for the "INTERNET IS FUN ON VODAFONE CONTEST" powered by Vodafone and Indiblogger.

Thank you Deepika, Nagarajan and Vodafone :-) Here is power to you at www.vodafone.in/fun

Images : Courtsey Vodafone

MY SMART PHONE'S WIFE : VODA-NET

I am back :-) After a long hiatus :-) The intermediate time space was wonderful. I enjoyed my blog-less sabbatical like an archaeologist who has stumbled upon a new Raptor fossil.

I made a few acquisitions in the  interim ... notedly an iPhone and...its grown up cousin...the iPad. As a concerned device parent, I immediately began my search for a suitable bride that would transform my gadgets into powerful Jedi Knights (I am on an exaggeration trip here, so, please bear with me :-) )

 Since I am a stickler for quality, I stick with Vodafone for most of my telco needs...And even in this regard, I consume their internet data packs at a frenzied pace, faster than rabbits can multiply (Thank you, Navjot Singh Siddhu :-) ) Mostly it is the Rs 99 for 1GB of data, pack, that I go for...It more than covers my browsing and entertainment needs...

The thing about Vodafone that makes me so loyal to the brand is the plethora of services that they provide in an encapsulated customer-delight centric package. That is what makes Internet over Vodafone fun :-)

Since the entire country has jumped onto the 3G bandwagon, one cannot but feel tempted to be a part of the revolution...and I more than count on the Zoozoo masters for my 3G needs. Fast, dependable and excellent..Vodafone 3G is a class apart from other operators.. 

I ll now cut to the chase and talk about the benefits, like Gandalf the Grey talks about "Frodo Baggins" :-) 

1. I gave my old Nokia smart phone to my mom (who after hours of vehement protests regarding her inability to handle "such a big phone" , conceded defeat and accepted my offer) and set her up with one of the applications that is creating such a huge ripple across the app space... "Whatsapp" !!!! Now my mother is online 24 x 7 and keeps me updated about her work (she is a librarian) by sharing pictures of her workplace and sends me recorded audio notes that consist of scoldings to make me eat on time and dire warnings that keep from speeding home on my bike. 

                                              

Plus add to it, my football friends who keep pinging me whenever their damned clubs have triumphed against Manchester United or my female friends who send me pictures of the "pretty pair of shoes on sale" that they happened to stumble across in the mall :-)

In essence, I feel like a spider, sitting at the centre of my web, that entangles all my near and dear ones...whenever someone quivers..I can feel the tremors :-) Sounds kinda gross, doesn't it? But I hope you get the picture (I can imagine the language purists going , "Ermmm ... no...we dont get it" ) 

Vodafone's Connectivity and download speeds makes downloading apps a breeze.....It might seem to be a very generic and boring use-case...but trust me, it is so much easier to instantly download the app onto your device if a friend recommends their favourite game or app during a hang-out session.Football scores, Cricket Scores, News and blogs are now much easier to access...

For eg. After watching an episode of "The Big bang Theory", I downloaded this "Whipcrack" app, that is a fun tool to use when you want your colleagues to pay attention. All you have to do is jerk your hand (holding the phone of course) in a whip-like motion..and you will be the proud producer of the most authentic whip sound ever produced by a digital device :-) Its kinda fun to wield the whip (if you know what I mean :-) )

2. Where would the world be without Angry birds?? or games like Temple run ??

Using Gamecenter, I can post my scores online and have the satisfaction of beating my friends (evil cackle)

3. I simply could not write a post based on this topic without including : 

As I am a Facebook addict and my posts and status updates are as important to me as a drug addict's little box of cocaine, the internet on my phone gives me the power to be online and be socially-virtually present all the time :-) I am sure this is one of the major benefits that everybody enjoys... Posting pictures and sharing them is quick and fast, thanks to Vodafone's superior uplink network.

This coupled with sat-nav, GPS and photo-tagging are some of the services that I frequently use whenever I am on foot or exploring. They are extremely useful tool to possess if you are in an unknown location and if you suffer from the I-AM-PAINFULLY-SHY-AND -I-CANT-ASK-RANDOM-STRANGERS-FOR-DIRECTIONS syndrome.

4. Now when it comes to Videos :-) I have a hobby for creating music videos and poetry recitals ( I am a straight Poetry lover :-) ) ... (Find me on youtube@superabhik).. Sharing Videos over Facebook and email becomes a treat...Getting reviews and comments from my friends about my videos is so much more easier...Catching the latest trailers and clips on Youtube is convenient and a great way to pass time (when you are travelling in AC buses with an hour to kill). The streaming quality is superior thanks to Vodafone's strong GSM coverage.

5. Accessing E-mails and responding to them has become one of my most favourite features on my phone. What's the big deal about it? :-) Let me explain....

It is ok if you are using a common email service provider like Gmail, but when you are using an exclusive office mail client like IBM Lotus Notes, the scenario takes a 360 degree phase shift. Having a permanent internet connection and a Lotus application means that I can access my office mails any-time and anywhere...and can promptly reply much to the chagrin of my office mates who can only access their mails only via their office desktops....It is also a lot of fun to reply to mails, late at night, and poke fun at your friends by telling them that you stayed back late ;-D

I realize that my points are now progressively getting generic and boring and might be putting my readers to sleep...therefore, I will present my last and most touching point :-) (I am a shameless sympathy gainer ;-) )

6. One of my very good friends who went abroad to study, stumbled upon me by happy accident recently (No, he HATES FB [unbelievable !!!]  ). This happened via an app called Draw Something (Yes, I suffer from OCAUD- Obsessive Compulsive App Using Disorder :-D ). My friend, who has an iPhone as well, was using the app, when he asked the system to find him a random opponent for a game. The system then delved into its database and selected me as an opponent (Yayyyyy !!!! ) Nowadays, we play almost a couple of hours a day and I have had the chance to ask him for his e-mail address. I love happy endings :-) (I am sounding like a girl in pink shoes now !!!! )

Internet over Vodafone is the perfect match for my mobile device...I have my family and friends near me, my favourite apps..a couple of swipes away and a host of services that make my day a lot easier...fun and naughtier :-)

PS : I happen to have a Vodafone connection by coincidence..Go to www.vodafone.in/fun  and find out how you can be a happy father/mother-in-law to your mobile device and the internet :-) 

CIAO :-)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This post has been submitted as a part of the "Internet is fun" contest powered by Vodafone and Indiblogger.

Of Playbooks and Plays

Delhi provides a fascinating advantage for me that Mumbai does not... Resourceful friends :-) That apart .... getting my hands on the new Blackberry playbook was easier than I expected. Now being an iPad owner as well, I was immediately taken aback by the size difference.The playbook is almost 2/3 rds the size of my iPad and size wise, almost put me off at the first glance.





But what surprised me the most was the OS that powered this unassuming little thing. QNX developed by a Canadian Software firm was one of the most delightful mobile operating systems I had ever used up to date...I have jostled with Andriod, iOS, Symbian, Linux and Windows and therefore can proudly say that I am well aware of the pros and cons that each of them has to offer....



The ring-master is a dual-core, 1GHz TI OMAP processor that's efficiently caressed and used by the QNX OS. QNX is a decidedly efficient and water-tight operating system that fuels everything from alien-space ships to, well, little black tablets...



A five megapixel camera juts out the back, while a three megapixel module handles front-facing duties. That later is tucked under the glass and situated just above the seven-inch, 1,024 x 600 display that will threaten neither rods nor cones when on maximum brightness. It does, however, deliver lovely clarity and good viewing angles.



Graphics are taken care of by a PowerVR design, which quite handily offloads video decoding and gaming acceleration from the processor, enabling this thing to decode and display 1080p video over HDMI while still crawling along quite smoothly and running productivity apps on the seven-inch display. Not a hint of dithering or pixelation, of course. Apps load quickly, tend to be impressively responsive, and switching from one to the next is effortless.



To switch from one app to the next you can swipe inward from the left or the right, which pops the app out of full-screen and lets you move forward or back in the queue. A tap then maximizes your new favorite app. Or, a swipe up from the bottom gives you an even higher-level view of your running apps, which you can again zing your way through. Grabbing one and throwing it upward sends it to the garbage collector, or you can tap the tiny X that appears next to its name.



It's something of a serious tablet when compared to the competition running software from Apple and Google and, while it certainly has games, its biggest strengths are rather more boring. It does a really great job at displaying PowerPoint presentations, for example, and has the security chops to keep last quarter's dismal sales figures from falling into the wrong hands....



An impressive battery life of upto 7 hours (my iPad beats that...10 hours hahahahahaha ) lets it do its thing.



Over all, a great thing to pair with your blackberry handset (I do not have one Sob !!! :-( Symbian Zindabad !!!) but I managed to get hold of a friend who has one and used the impressive BRIDGE feature...



All in all....a nice little treat....(I stole adoring glances at it while it was tucked away in my bag :-) )



Now talking about plays..... (Again...thank you Delhi :-) )...

If you ever can (unlike me who had front row passes *gloating laugh* ) watch Frankenstein by Danny Boyle....It is in one word STUNNING !!!!!!!!!!!!

The use of technology to bring the stage to life is absorbing, riveting and super to say the least....






Cumberbatch (top left) alternates roles with Lee Miller (Top right) in Boyle's production who play both Frankenstein and the monster. The stage adaptation is a far cry from Mary Shelly's novel that I had received for standing first in class VI (lol)



Miller, however, strikes me as the more disturbing and poignant monster, while Cumberbatch undoubtedly has the edge as the scientist.



Danny Boyle's extraordinarily haunting production is set on the notion of alternating the two leading actors in the roles of Frankenstein and his brilliant handiwork.The role-reversal makes deep thematic sense because it highlights the irony whereby the son becomes the father, the slave the master.



It is a hell of a production. This taut, thrilling play runs to its awful conclusion without an interval, indeed with hardly a moment for breath.



I nearly fell out of my seat at the shock bridal-chamber scene. Twice.



As for now, I am recovering from the shock of having seen a masterpiece and twiddling away at the playbook with my thumbs...



Not often that you get to see the Playbook and a play based on a book all in the same time span, do you?? :-)



CIAO all :-)