Archive for the 'Tech' Category

Underwhelming Steve Jobs

Jan 27 2010 Published by rtlechow under Tech

From today’s iPad announcement, I give you Underwhelming Steve Jobs:
"What this device does is extraordinary... You can browse the web with it."
Add your own on memegenerator.

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The World Beyond Big Telcos

Feb 26 2009 Published by rtlechow under Experiment, Internet, Tech, Toronto

I recently had the opportunity to talk to Kris Reyes and Tony The Cameraperson from CityTV about VoIP:

To add some detail:

  • I’m not normal. I don’t have a landline or a mobile. Big Canadian Telco’s are clueless when it comes to pricing this stuff.
  • I have Skype at ~$36/year to make unlimited calls across North America. Annoyingly, Skype can’t receive calls (“SkypeIn“) in Canada, although people have been asking for it since at least 2006.
  • I use Gizmo5 at $20/3 months to receive calls, in Skype’s stead. That basically gives me a “real phone number” in Toronto’s 416 area code.
  • I can receive live calls if I’m running Gizmo5’s desktop application (similar to Skype’s desktop app), but I rarely do, unless the call is scheduled ahead of time. Usually, calls and texts go straight to my voicemail, and those voicemails are immediately emailed to me as attachments. I like isolating things to my inbox.
  • At one time, I played with DIDWW, which offers a “real phone number forwarded to Skype” service. Voicemail didn’t work, which was a dealbreaker.

This isn’t for everyone, but if all you want is a phone, voicemail, and you don’t mind “living in software”, it’s the cheapest option I’ve found.

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