High-tech New Year's resolutions for 2009
Adam Turner brings in the New Year with a bang . . . and a Sony Blu-ray player, Viewsonic photo frame, and a Smiggle Splashproof Speaker Case for listening to music in the shower.
New Year's Resolution #1
My first New Years resolution is to stop obsessing about finding that one dream device that does everything. I'm never satisfied with with a combination PVR, DVD player, media player and alarm clock if there's another one out there that's also a low-fat grill and coffee maker. With functionality comes complexity and often instability - leaving me with a house full of gadgets which never quite deliver on their lofty promises.
I've made an early start on this resolution, recently buying a ViewSonic DP701W4 Digital Photo Frame and a Sony BDP-S350 Blu-ray player. Neither are the latest and greatest, but they're both great performers and I got them at excellent prices in the pre- and post-Christmas sales.
I was considering buying a PlayStation 3 (for Blu-ray), Beywoniz DP-S1 and Apple TV as part of my lounge room overhaul, but I'm now leaning towards building a best of breed solution from dedicated devices. Next to my new Sony Blu-ray player I'll probably drop in a TiVo personal video recorder, demoting my bipolar Vista Media Centre to the role of media player.
Once again there are PVRs with more features than TiVo, but I know it's a great performer that won't stuff me around. Beywoniz's PVRs need to be a bit more user-friendly before I'd inflict one on my family and Topfield's habit of releasing flaky firmware for the TF7100HDPVRt has users screaming blue murder in the support forums. There's new firmware coming for the TF7100HDPVRt next week, which is Topfield's last chance to impress me before I give up on the 7100 and pledge my allegiance to TiVo.
New Year's Resolution #2
My other high-tech New Year's resolution is to stop looking for high-tech solutions when a low-tech solution will do the job. Classic example - I've been thinking about setting up an Apple Express base station and speakers upstairs so I can listen to music and podcasts in the shower. I've also been thinking about buying an Eee PC to wire into the car for similar reasons.
Both ideas seem like a lot of expense and mucking around for something that I'll only use for a few minutes each day and I've been mulling over lots of complicated options. The other day my wife came home from the shops with a Smiggle Splashproof Speaker Case for listening to an MP3 player in the shower. It cost the grand sum of $30 and is the perfect tool for the job. Sometimes the simple solutions are the best.
I'm hoping these two simple resolutions will help reduce my tech-related stress levels in the year to come. What are your high-tech New Year's resolutions for 2009?
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