Author: Jeremy Butler

Y’know what really burns my bacon? When a software update tries to scam you into INSTALLING some other piece of crap.

Looking at you, Adobe Flash Player, and your DEFAULT setting of installing McAfee Security Scan Plus.

And the thing is, Flash has few friends these days and is a dying, decaying platform. So why is Adobe irritating and alienating the few users Flash has left by trying to pull crap like this?

I guess I should be accustomed to the marketing of electronics products being full of crap, but it’s still disappointing when you get tripped up by it when purchasing an expensive device that is virtually unreturnable. Here is my story of my latest encounter with crappy, misleading marketing:

I enjoy Pandora radio and I’d worked out a clunky system for getting it to play through my car stereo. It involved a gizmo plugged in to my car’s aux input and the manual control of Pandora on my Droid Incredible 2 phone. So, when I had a little extra cash from a textbook royalty check, I thought I’d splurge on a car receiver that handled Pandora without the extra gizmo. And then my tech fever escalated and I decided to go for a unit that also incorporated GPS and phone features.

This drew me to the Pioneer AVIC-X940BT (who names these things? former rocket scientists?), which seemed to have everything I needed and, the Mobile Electronics salesman told me, would display Pandora data and allow me to control Pandora right through the device’s interface–connecting to my phone via Bluetooth.

But I was worried about compatibility so I checked Pioneer’s Website, where it says,

Compatible with Apple iOS, as well as Android devices that support the Bluetooth Serial Port Profile (SPP). Simply download the free Pandora Radio app to your iPhone or Android device and connect to the AVIC-X940BT and take your music to the next level.

The Droid Incredible 2 does indeed support Bluetooth Serial Port Profile so I thought I was all set.

I poked around everywhere I could on the Pioneer Website, but nowhere could I find a specific list of compatible devices. All I found were displays like the one below that seem to confirm compatibility with Android.

And so I bit. I paid too much money to have the unit installed by Mobile Electronics.

Everything seemed to be fine with pairing my phone, via Bluetooth, with the AVIC-X940BT until I tried to get Pandora to work. Then I began encountering error messages about the inability to connect:

Bluetooth connection is disconnected. Press “Connect” to connect.

This message appeared while I was already connected. I scoured the PDF manual (of course they don’t give you a real paper manual anymore) for an answer.When I found the following fine print (“Compatibility with all Android devices is not guaranteed.”) buried in the 240-page manual, I suspected I was in trouble.

Then I went back to Mobile Electronics to ask about it. An installer dude checked it out and declared that it wasn’t supposed to work with Pandora. That Pandora only works via a wired connection to an iPhone.

I knew that wasn’t right, but the installer dude couldn’t be convinced otherwise. So I called Pioneer’s tech support–after Googling around turned up no solid info. There I had it confirmed: the AVIC-X940BT is not compatible with the Droid Incredible 2–an Android 2.2+ phone that’s less than a year old and supports Bluetooth SPP. In fact, the tech guy tried to replicate my situation using his own Droid phone and his model didn’t work either. He found a list that states that only 12 specific Android phones work with Pandora and this Pioneer unit.

Sigh.

I told the guy to please tell his supervisor that I am extremely disappointed about this and that the marketing of the AVIC-X940BT as compatible with Android phones supporting Bluetooth SPP is very misleading and should be corrected. The tech guy said he would “capture that feedback” and pass it along.

Sigh.

Ah well, at least this unit does, like, 70% of what I bought it for. And, who knows, maybe a firmware update will solve my problem? Or maybe my next smartphone will be one of the compatible ones.

But still it’s sad to have the crappiness of electronics marketing confirmed. Again.

Update 3:50, Thursday:

 

Well, get this. In his NY Times column today, David Pogue is dealing with the same Pandora issues as me–although in his Toyota Prius! See “Pogue’s Posts: The Prius V and Its Entune System”, in the May 3 NY Times. Turns out that Pandora in the Prius does not work wirelessly with the iPhone, but does with Android!

But probably not the Droid Incredible 2, I’d wager.

So, Farmers Insurance Group tells me that by paying my premium I am acknowledging that I “understand and
agree to all the terms and conditions of the Subscription Agreement.”
And here’s how the Agreement, which I must acknowledge understanding, begins. This is all one sentence (I have put a line break at each comma):

For and in consideration of the benefits to be derived therefrom the subscriber covenants and agrees with Farmers Insurance Exchange and other subscribers thereto through their and each of their attorney-in-fact,
the Farmers Underwriters Association,
to exchange with all other subscribers’ policies of insurance or reinsurance containing such terms and conditions therein as may be specified by said attorney-in-fact and approved by the Board of Governors or its Executive Committee for any loss insured against,
and subscriber hereby designates,
constitutes and appoints Farmers Underwriters Association to be attorney-in-fact for subscriber,
granting to it power to substitute another in its place,
and in subscriber’s name,
place and stead to do all things which the subscriber or subscribers might or could do severally or jointly with reference to all policies issued,
including cancellation thereof,
collection and receipt of all monies due the Exchange from whatever source and disbursement of all loss and expense payments,
effect reinsurance and all other acts incidental to the management of the Exchange and the business of interinsurance;
subscriber further agrees that there shall be paid to said Association, as compensation for its becoming and acting as attorney-in-fact,
the membership fees and twenty per centum of the Premium Deposit for the insurance provided and twenty per centum of the premiums required for continuance thereof.

And insurance companies wonder why they have a reputation for obfuscation.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about buying a DSLR camera in order to shoot video on a flash-memory camera. I recently borrowed a Canon T2i, which is generally well respected as a prosumer camera, and gave it a spin.

My main issues with the T2i camera is how it fails to significantly improve upon what I can do with my little Canon S95 camera.

For example, the T2i records video at 1920×1080 which looks great and all, but the S95 can do 1280×720 and that’s probably HD enough for my needs. My home computer could barely play the T2i-recorded video without stuttering.

The T2i offers many manual controls, which I used to love, but my eyesight has gotten so bad that I’m better off with an automatic control for focus than I am trusting my own peepers. The T2i and the S95 have virtually the same auto-focus algorithm so this is a tie and the manual controls are superfluous.

The T2i, oddly, does not let you use the eyepiece when shooting video. You HAVE to use the LCD panel, which is a problem in direct sunlight. You can barely see what you’re shooting. The S95 doesn’t even have an eyepiece, true, but its LCD seems to be easier to see in direct sunlight.

The S95 is lacking in the telephoto lens category, since it’s zoom is pretty pitiful and its lens cannot be changed. Score one for the T2i.

But of course, what the S95 lacks in zoom/manual controls it makes up for in portability. And if I need to do extended long-lens shooting, I can go back to my miniDV camcorder.

And so I’ve decided to apply the $1k I’d have spent on a DSLR on a “boutique” high-performance computer! MainGear here I come!

http://www.maingear.com/custom/computers/custom-desktops.php

The New York Times is locking its material behind a paywall. I get that.The free ride was nice, but now it’s over.

What I think is crappy, however, is that this solicitation email does not anywhere mention what the subscription rate is after the introductory period. Oh, the asterisked fineprint tells you that you’ll automatically be charged at the regular, higher rate, but it doesn’t say what it is.

Pretty crappy move, Gray Lady.

— NY Times solicitation email —

Dear NYTimes.com reader,
As you may know, The Times is now charging for unlimited access to NYTimes.com and our NYTimes apps. But as a valued NYTimes.com reader, you are invited to enjoy unlimited access at an introductory rate: just 99¢ for your first 4 weeks.*
Unrivaled coverage. Unlimited access.
Visitors to our site get 20 free articles a month, but that’s fewer than 1% of all the published articles on NYTimes.com each month. Subscribe now at our introductory rate and enjoy unlimited access to all the breaking news updates, video, audio, multimedia and more. The finest reporters in their field keep you informed 24 hours a day on your computer, smartphone and tablet.
Act now — just 99¢ for your first 4 weeks.
Subscribe today and choose from packages that include unlimited access to NYTimes.com, plus our smartphone and tablet apps. And enjoy access to the world’s finest journalism — any way you want.
Please note: At this time, we are unable to process orders for this special offer from smartphone and tablet (iPad™, Galaxy Tab, Xoom) browsers. When you are ready to subscribe, please place your order from a browser on your computer.

*New York Times digital subscriptions are sold separately from e-reader editions, Premium Crosswords and The New York Times Crosswords apps. Mobile apps are not supported on all devices. All subscriptions will automatically renew and the credit card will be charged in advance of each billing period unless canceled. If the subscription is canceled, refunds and termination of access will follow the Terms of Sale policy. Prices are subject to change. Other restrictions and taxes may apply. 

Last Saturday (3/12), while in New Orleans for the Society for Cinema and Media Studies conference, I attempted to attend a screening at The Theatres (sic) at Canal Place — a “first class”, elitist, ostensibly upscale theater that refuses entry to anyone under 18.

When I arrived at the theater, I went to the cashier to buy a ticket and she and the manager were tied up, trying to refund a woman’s tickets and free the seats for them. You see, TTaCP is one of those stupid, crappy theaters that forces you to use reserved seats. What is this? The frakkin’ opera? So, when the woman got a refund — for what transgression by TTaCP I do not know — they had to release the seats she had reserved.

I stood there patiently for 10 minutes while they fumbled with the computer. Eventually, I commented on the wait and the cashier referred me to a ticket-purchasing kiosk. As a final insult, the show I wanted to see was sold out. So, I left, angered by the incompetence of the theater’s staff.

I am irritated by three aspects of this experience:

1. There is no obvious sign directing patrons to the ticket-purchase kiosk and the cashier did not think to refer me to it before I asked,
2. TTaCP’s computer system is such crap (or TTaCP’s employees are so poorly trained) that a simple refund transaction can gum up the works and
3. Reserved-seat systems in movie theaters are an abomination. Why would I want to choose my seat in the lobby? I’d much rather wait until I was inside the theater and could position myself as far away from potential noise/trouble makers. And what if someone beside/behind you takes a phone call? You’re locked into your reserved seat and can’t distance yourself from him/her.