I'm trying to decide if I should start breaking up my posts by subject. I really enjoy just laying out all the things that I'm 'thinking about'... but I'm starting to think these would make more sense if they were dedicated as a one post per subject.
Interesting Revelation on New "Lower Price" iPhone
Yesterday I made what I thought would be my only post about the new iPhone. I was willing to leave well enough alone, not really having much interest in it.
Then I noticed one post in one of my many feeds: Apple and AT&T Drop Revenue Sharing, Boost Data Plan Costs
From the article:
And in order to lower the price on the new iPhones to $199 and $299, it appears that AT&T has subsidized a portion of the handset's cost. From their press release:
In the near term, AT&T anticipates that the new agreement will likely result in some pressure on margins and earnings, reflecting the costs of subsidized device pricing, which, in turn, is expected to drive increased subscriber volumes.
I admit that I briefly considered this possibility, but moved past it fairly quickly, but it makes perfect sense. In essence this means that you're not paying any less for the iPhone, just paying less up front, and paying more for your data plan.
One estimate I read was that a $199 iPhone with added cost of the data plan and the 2 year contract means that you'll actually pay $434 for the new iPhone.
Very interesting.
The Happening
I have to admit that I'm very excited about the coming release of The Happening. I'm concerned only because M. Night Shyamalan's last several movies have been absolutely terrible, like Lady in the Water and The Village, feeling less like actual movies and more like a bid to hit you with twists. (The Village was really only terrible because it was obvious from the get go where he was going with it, meanwhile Lady in the Water was awful because there was basically no value to it whatsoever, and filled with over the top drivel.)
I enjoyed Signs and The Sixth Sense (pissing off the people around me when, in the very beginning he's sitting in the living room and I said, "He's DEAD!! DUH!"), and everything I'm seeing about this has me getting excited.
It doesn't hurt that it features Marky Mark Wahlberg, and John Leguizamo, both of whom haven't really done anything I didn't like. In film anyway... I was never a fan of the funky bunch. (Leguizamo's stand-up kills.)
I hope that, with all the prominent mention of the films 'R' rating, a first for M. Night Shyamalan, we're going to see some amazingly gruesome endings to all the suicides shown in the trailers. I have to think that this will be, if nothing else, fun to watch on several levels.
Perhaps this time he'll actually get me with the 'twist'.
Transmission-X
I've been meaning to talk about some web comics I've really been enjoying. I've been on deviantArt for a while, and in that time I've managed to follow some really amazing artists. Some time ago one of them listed some of their favorite web comics, and from there I discovered the wonders of Transmission-X.
It's a brilliant free comic site with plenty of amazing. The thing to keep in mind about this site is that all the 'talent' on the site is actual talent. Names like Michael Cho, Ramon Perez, and Scott Hepburn, all of which are actual comic book / comic industry artists.
Right now I've read, from the beginning to present, Kukuburi, The Port, and Raising Hell.
I strongly recommend checking it out. None of the current comics have been running for all that long, so it's really easy to get caught up on everything running.
I've started reading Sin Titulo, and Kissing Chaos, and I'm hoping to get started on Paper Cut soon.
Kukuburi is, so far, my favorite series, but they're all good.
BMW's "GINA"
I have to admit that I tend to lust over BMW's like most guys (and gals, for that matter). They are amazing driving machines, with amazing design, incredible power, and an assumed price tag that tells people that you've got far too much money than you know what to do with, or that you're willing to pass your debt on to your kids.
BMW has always been known for 'pushing the envelope' in terms of design, but this new GINA concept is so far beyond the accepted envelope that it's... it's... I don't even know what it is. It is insane.
If you watch the video, you'll see what I'm talking about:
A fabric skin.
I've got so many questions about this that just aren't answered in the video. First of all, what happens the first time you end up with a friction rub, or a rock is kicked up by a tractor, do you have to sew on a patch. If it's just fabric, instead of waxing and a car wash, do you have to take it to laundromat? How to you keep it from staining when an inattentive pigeon inadvertently drops a deuce on it? How to you keep the engine from being saturated in the rain?
It seems like a great concept, but I can't imagine it in production. Maybe they'll prove me wrong, but I doubt it.
And that's all I have for now...
there's plenty more where all this came from, but it'll have to wait for another time.
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