Y2HH

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 09:44 PM) I hope this was a joke. Are you saying USB has been consistent? There are at least 3 versions I've been through with cell phones in the last 10 years. That's because idiots keep changing it. USB is supposed to be a standard universal connection type. But you had USB, Mini USB, Mini USB-a, Mini USB-b, Micro USB-a, Micro USB-b, and then a combination of Mini-ab's, etc...so you're right, there has been a bunch of garbage going on in the USB arena, too. But most of this nonsense as stopped and most are accepting the same micro ports these days. I remember my garmin and my blackberry both used a different sized mini usb cable, and it was annoying.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 09:49 PM) Micro-USB is a standard now in Europe. And it should be everywhere. I agree.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 08:14 PM) I never said 5+ is the only market, but there will be one soon. Every year, Android phones get larger and larger screens. 3 years ago, it was 4 inches, 2 years ago it was 4.3. Then it was 4.5. Now it's 4.7-5. And this will keep going until users revolt, which they haven't yet since manufacturers have been able to fit these screens on devices while maintaining a similar form factor. You say 5+ inch phones have no place, but the Galaxy Note is a lot more popular than say, most Motorola or HTC phones. What I was saying is that your dream of a 4.5 inch Nexus device isn't going to happen and that is because of where the screen size trend is going. Google isn't going to downsize the screen size of their flagship phone while other devices have 5 inch 1080P screens with similar form factor. Could Google possibly make an array of Nexus phones with different sizes aimed at different markets? Perhaps and that rumor was thrown around this year, only to be proven false. And let's be frank here, there is no such thing as a 4-4.8 inch market for Android phones, it's more tiered than that. Most high-low-end Android phones end up with screens around 4 inches. The HTC One V, the Sony Xperia Sola, the Galaxy S III Mini, HTC One S, and older phones tend to be around this screen size. Then you have your mid-end phones at around 4.3 to 4.5 with the Galaxy S II, Droid RAZR, etc. All of the premium phones of the past year all have 4.7+ inch screens. HTC One X, Galaxy S III, Droid RAZR HD, Nexus 4, etc. Either they will stay at that size or they will go even higher and the trend from the past is that flagship phone screen size goes up. When will they stop? Who knows? The sales haven't really suffered with the increase. The trend has been upward, but only to a point. Even Samsung, noted there is a huge market for 4.0-4.8" screens by releasing a Galaxy S3 Mini (not in the US yet), and their biggest selling phone of all time is of course the S3. Their Note phones have sold a few million...but when comparing to what the S3 sold, it's not even a close comparison. The market for 5+" phones is primarily in China, where they actually sold a few million of them, but that's still a small number...the American market hasn't been very accepting that market. I'm not saying there isn't a niche market for them in the states, there obviously is, but it's not a trend market that they'll continue to go after being that their smaller devices are outselling them with relative ease. The sweet spot has been shown to be between > 4" and And like I said, while I'd prefer 4.5", a number I would have once quoted as 4.2"*, I feel they get too large/unwieldy after that point. That said, If Googles Nexus comes out, has superb build quality, LTE, enough onboard storage, which is basically all I ask of it, but it happens to be .2" bigger than I wanted, I'm not going to let that stop me from making a purchase of it. * The better builds of the shells have resulted in smaller overall phones, so I've gone from saying 4.2" is a perfect size to 4.5", because the outside casing is no longer taking up a ton more room after the screen real estate as they once did. The S3 is a perfect example of this, they really shaved down wasted bezel space and made the overall phone smaller than it would have been a few years ago, this trend has allowed larger screens to be fit into smaller overall form factors.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 09:50 PM) Interesting. I'm not in a hurry, probably going to wait until my iPhone 4 bites the dust. The Note 2 is 5.5" screen (meaning the phone is even better than that). It's too big for most practical purposes. If you're a cargo pant wearing type that doesn't do too much moving around, however, it may be fine. I couldn't even fit a Note 2 into any of my pockets.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 03:58 PM) This is why you don't lock yourself into such docks. USB is way more universal. But that's just painfully obvious. Yet there are far more accessories for apples products that don't use USB. While I sympathize, you should be correct in saying a standard should be more universal, reality shows otherwise, unfortunately.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 04:22 PM) Isn't Apple coming out with a $30 adapter? Been out for months.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 03:07 PM) That guy bought 8,000 songs off iTunes? Damn... Anyways, it seems like that guy should have jailbroken his iPhone if he wanted to set default apps so badly. But then again, something like that should be standard and mandatory in any OS. In fact, Microsoft is gonna pay a ton of money just because they didn't give users a choice of the default browser on Windows 7 in Europe. There is a huge market for 4.0-4.8" screens, which can all be acceptable form factors depending on the overall build of the phone. To pretend there is no market for smaller screens is ludicrous simply because a few OEM's have decided to jump the shark and go well into the 5.5" range. The iPhone 5 has sold an estimated 40+million devices at 4", while the Galaxy S3 has sold 20+ million 4.8" so lets not pretend 5"+ is the only market. There is no way the new Google Nexus is that big. I think I'm more in line with reality with it coming in around 4.5"-4.8". And I'm fine with the size of the S3 because it's external design makes up for it's larger screen (so it doesn't seem TOO large), but anything beyond that is simply too big. I don't care if Chinese OEMs are going after the small penis crowd, either. It doesn't interest me to have a 5+ inch phone. The US isn't their market for those phones, hence why they sell like s*** here. The Note, Note 2 and that new 5" 1080p HTC screen are simply too large...and I've used every one of them.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 01:01 PM) I'm holding out for the next Nexus phone. The next Nexus phone will mark the first Android phone -- IF the hardware is good enough -- that I will buy. However, that IF is a big if. I do not want a 5" screen (4.5 would be perfect...I find anything larger than 4.5 obnoxious and too big for me...I'm a little guy). I want LTE, I want 32 gigs of on device storage (I don't really need more than that, so expanded storage doesn't matter to me, either). Also, I don't want the phone to feel like cheap plastic garbage, either. Make it nice. Please.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 12:54 PM) Do you really want me to go after this? I'll need to get to it tomorrow since I have an eyeglass appointment today, but seriously I can go into it if people would like. Yes.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 12:59 PM) Had they done that in 2008-2012 it would have been devastating and undoubtedly would have led to the great depression part II. Is putting 20% of your work force out of work responsible when it could be avoided? The government is not a household. It's not an analogy that should be a part of the discussion. Again, you ignored the part where I said there are times that emergency actions kick in to avert such a crisis...I'm pretty sure 2008-2012 would have qualified. And yes, the Government should be treated as a household...a massive massive household that looks out for the people that live in that household. That simply means the government should be responsible, and it should hold the citizens of that household responsible in many ways, too. It doesn't mean they should have carte-blanche to spend money they don't have...because those citizens are the ones that supply them their money in the first place. In bad times, I sometimes have to borrow in order to fix something on my house -- then that's what you do. But in good times, when nothing is wrong with the house, you don't continue spending as if there is. The problem with our govenrment is they do exactly that. They borrow/spend in bad times (supposed to do that), but they continue to do the same in good times, when they're supposed to be doing the exact opposite. This is a valid analogy whether you like it or not.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 12:37 PM) I disagree on the spending limit but three cheers for the post nonetheless! You can have a spending limit with emergency rules that kick in under certain circumstances, preventing spending of money over budgets. The problem is we don't have a budget, or a limit of any kind. I bring in a certain amount of money per month...so I can only spend a certain amount per month. I don't think it's too much to ask the government be responsible and do the same under ordinary circumstances.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 11:35 AM) Which parts of the country are not prone to disaster? Tornadoes happen in a heck of a lot of states, earthquakes in all of the west coast states and the midwest (New Madrid fault), hurricanes along the south and east, and flooding in a number of places as well. Shouldn't say "not prone" but "less prone". The problem is, and most people seem to ignore this, is that I guarantee it's infinity cheaper for me to insure my home in Chicago, than is for someone to insure a home of equal value in one of these disaster zones. The New Madrid fault is probably the most dangerous fault line in the US, however, it's SO dormant, it baffles scientists as to why it hardly moves anymore. Average fault lines move like 1-2 inches a year...the new Madrid moves like 0.14 inches, which is uncommon. My numbers could be off on that, because I'm repeating from memory, but they're probably not far off. The New Madrid is so dormant, insurance companies don't even consider it a risk at this point.

QUOTE (mr_genius @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 11:22 AM) That is what the debt ceiling fight should be. But I'm sure the clueless GOP will cave in and increase spending 10 fold. The problem is the debt ceiling isn't the spending ceiling. People often confuse the two. The debt ceiling is allowing the government to borrow the money they *ALREADY* spent. If they don't, the default on those loans...and the people they borrowed from get f***ed because now they'll never get the full amount borrowed. If they were talking about setting a spending limit, it would/could actually do something positive. But the "debt ceiling" as it is now, does no such thing.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 11:10 AM) Is it a good policy or isn't it? "Let's oppose this because we are worried about future hypocrisy". The senate filibuster is horrible, it needs to be reformed. I'm not saying it doesn't. But in typical Washington fashion, they'll change it with a shortsighted mentality, because it's helping them now, but when it's used against them in the future they'll whine that it needs to be reformed...again. The problem is, they'll have already reformed it...only they didn't reform it in a future proof way, they reformed it in a way that was right for them at THAT specific time. This is what they always do.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 11:05 AM) Whaaa whaaa whaaaa You say that, but it's true. This isn't the first time, won't be the last time.

They'll like this idea until it's used against them in the future.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 4, 2013 -> 08:29 AM) An iPhone Lover’s Confession: I Switched To the Nexus 4. Completely. Not a bad review of changing, I'm mostly of the same opinion that until Jelly Bean, Android wasn't ready, and it wasn't in the same class as iOS. Android loyalists lie to themselves and say it was, but it wasn't. Enter Jelly Bean, which changed the landscape between Android an iOS. It's closer to ready now than it's ever been, to the point I will consider a change next update. IMO, Android achieved parity with a few tradoffs with iOS as of 4.2.x, and it will only get better from there. I do have a few reservations on a change, simply out of device support. So, it would have to be a Nexus phone, as I do not want to hack my phone with unstable (or what they call stable) builds of Cyanogen, or any other hack mod bulls***. I want to run *official* Google software updates, when they're released, on point, THAT DAY. Not months later or even weeks later...I find this unacceptable. I do not want a device running Android 4.1.2 when 4.2.1 exists, because I'm busy waiting for Samsung or someone else to f*** with the code, then hand it over to for them to f*** with it more. That leaves no alternatives for me except a Nexus model. As he went over in this story, I want to run the pure Android experience...not the experience Samsung or someone else tries to sell me on. I have no interest in this bloatware/skinning crap, and as I said earlier, I do not want to have to hack my phone to make it not suck. This leads to another issue...IMO, Samsung's current S3 is the *class* of devices running Android. Period. The HTX 1X+ comes close, but not quite there. This new Nexus phone, same boat. Not quite as nice as the S3. Until I feel a Nexus device is as good as the flag bearer of Android devices, I wouldn't be able to make the jump...so I'm hoping this new super phone Google is working on with Motorola Google, is better than an S3, being it's aged, and at least as good as whatever Samsung ends up releaseing as their S4...if and when that happens, they will have gained a convert. This will, however, mark the first year I very much consider making the switch. Android has arrived...now it just needs to hardware to match it in the Nexus line.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 3, 2013 -> 11:17 AM) Evidently you are new to filibuster... Definitely not new here...as I expect this to happen a few times over the course of an argument, and actually use it quite often myself -- but after you've used it about 50 times in a row -- it's time to admit you have nothing left to add to the conversation and to stop clicking reply.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Jan 3, 2013 -> 11:12 AM) come on dude, we've gone through 90 pages of this. everyone knows where everyone stands. we're just rehashing the same damn arguments. what's the point anymore? It's just reached a point where you're posing The Sheldon Cooper Offensive at this point. As Sheldon put it: You're now engaging in reductio ad absurdum. It's the logical fallacy of extending someone's argument to ridiculous proportions and then criticizing the result. While I do this myself, I think you've all made your point now.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 3, 2013 -> 11:12 AM) ...you do realize the BS was mocking the pro-gun argument that some Republican rep. made that "anything can be a weapon, even credit cards!" right? Because we keep hearing about how, on the one hand, this type of gun or this size magazine etc. are not especially deadly and look at all the other ways you can kill someone! but then we also hear about how anyone without a gun is defenseless or, more absurdly, how the government would be some tyrannical dictatorship without heavily armed civilians. I do, I actually was aiming that post at Reddy, not BS...but after I re-read it, I see I accidentally did just that.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Jan 3, 2013 -> 11:02 AM) boom goes the dynamite. Yes, because using a credit card to defend yourself against a criminal with a gun will do wonders. Just hope you and BS never find yourselves in that situation, because if you do...you won't be here to tell us about it. If anything, that dynamite blew up in your face. If you guys can't actually have a meaningful conversation, don't have one. Because all the bulls*** you've added to the conversation as of late is just that...absolute nonsensical bulls***.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 2, 2013 -> 10:18 AM) Nah, the AR-15 is semi-automatic. If it were full-auto it'd be the M16, which we all know so well. The AR-15 isn't an assault rifle. It's an "assault weapon" when reaching for definition. AR, in AR-15 does not stand for Assault Rifle like people seem to think, it stands for ArmaLite, the original maker of the weapon.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 2, 2013 -> 09:11 AM) The problem of course is, they're winning. They're going to get more guns in schools and on the streets out of this. Sitting here angrily watching the body count pile up until the next massacre happens and we wonder how in the world the next guy got his hands on an assault rifle seems like a reasonable reaction. Assault rifles aren't necessary to do the damage that was done...being that he didn't even have an assault rifle. At best definition, it could be called an "assault weapon". Only full automatic/burst capable weaponry officially makes the definition of AR. Blah blah blah...point is, AR's aren't necessary to do what was done. So people need to stop leaning on this AR bulls*** like it matters. It doesn't.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 2, 2013 -> 08:51 AM) You may want to tell the most prominent gun advocate interest group and their supporters how silly that argument is since they're still making it. They're not here, saying the same things over and over to a limited audience, or I would have.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 2, 2013 -> 08:31 AM) Well, the 2011 debacle was pretty unusual, so do you mean it'll be like that (dumb brinksmanship) or it'll be like all of the other times, a minor procedural bill that the minority party feigns principled opposition to while doing nothing to stop it. The divided congress and it's generally petty attitude pretty much mirrors our divided nation and the people having the same petty arguments amongst each other. The pomp and circumstance will continue because it looks good on TV/Internets. The argument will remain unresolved and the can will get kicked down the road, as they always do. And we will let them.