The Ultimate Snow Brush for Winnipeg Winters

Just after the first snowfall, I made my way down to the local Wal-Mart to purchase a snow brush.  If you’ve never experienced snow or have only seen very little, here in Winnipeg, the trusty snow brush is a commuter’s best friend. 

After looking at all the options, I decided on a Folding model made by Oskar that expanded to a broom-style brush and then collapsed into a toothbrush form with the push of a button and a quick sliding motion.  The broom mode would make it easy to clear a lot of snow in very little time I figured.  At just under $19.00 CDN, I thought this would be a good quality brush.  Boy, was I wrong.  Not only was it cumbersome and rickety to use, after a week’s use, it broke!  Did I mention the ice scraper at the other end of the brush scraped lines making my windshield look more like a grille rather than a clean windshield.  I probably could have taken it back for a refund or exchange (We all know how easy it is to return stuff to Wal-Mart even without a receipt) but I decided to take it as a lesson learned. 

Oskar Snow Brush I bought

At the same time I bought my brush, I bought a $3.97 CDN mini-snowbrush for my aunt’s car.  Since she’s a tiny woman, a mini brush was the clear choice.  For a 4 dollar brush from some obscure manufacturer, this little thing was a workhorse.  The bristles of the brush were tough enough to clear even the most tightly packed snowfall like a snow plough.  I was able to brush away a 2″ layer easily; something I couldn’t even finish with the $19 Oskar BECAUSE IT BROKE!  The scraper sheared away frost from my windshield like it was being melted off.  I found it difficult to believe that this was a budget brush.

Moral of the story: Just because something costs more doesn’t necessarily mean it’s more expensive…especially when it comes to snow brushes!

Addendum: Oskar doesn’t even have a website I can link to!  You’d think such a prominent company would at least invest in a website.  *Thumbs Down*

Gadget Review: HTC Tytn

Let’s get this out of the way first: I’m not a professional gadget reviewer and the views expressed here are simply my findings over the short time I’ve owned the HTC Tytn. 

With that out of the way, let’s take a close look at the HTC Tytn which I picked up over the holidays from Rogers. 

HTC Tytn Overview

The HTC Tytn by HTC is a Pocket PC.  For all intents and purposes a miniature laptop.  Some of its most notable features are a large 2.8″ touch-enabled screen, Windows Mobile 5.0, WiFi-Enabled, Bluetooth 2.0, built-in voice command software, and a hidden slide-out light-sensitive hardware keyboard. 

Main competition to the HTC Tytn are the Motorola Q series, the Blackberry, and the Treo series which are the main phones I researched before finally deciding on the HTC Tytn.

Why I Chose the Tytn

I chose this particular PDA Phone because of its sleek, clean styling, slide-out hardware keyboard, large touchscreen display, and WiFi capabilities.  Wireless Data being as expensive as it is here (no unlimited data plans as of yet) the WiFi was what sealed the deal for me.  The Tytn is not GPS enabled so Google Map users will likely have to move to the Tytn II which to the best of my knowledge is not yet available here in Canada. 

The Good

Obviously, one of the finer points of the Tytn is the WiFi capability.  If you’re unfamiliar with the term WiFi it means basically that you can connect to your home network or any wireless access point and subsequently access the internet with wirelessly through a wireless router.  I download and listen to a lot of podcasts so this is a definite plus.  If you do not have a router, the handset is 3G enabled meaning you can access the web wirelessly at near broadband speeds anywhere that 3G network services are available but you’re paying for data.The screen is large and easy to read in most room lighting but can become difficult to read in the sun.  Otherwise the size of the screen allows you to use the touch capabilities without too much trouble. 

Bluetooth performance is sound.  I did find an issue using a Motorola HS850 headset and the voice command capabilities but thanks to a bluetooth fix, that problem was quickly cured. 

The Bad

I have several rants about this phone.  One, what the hell were they thinking with this stylus?  It’s a telescopic, chincy little toothpick.  I much prefer my old Treo’s stylus to this one.  After using the Tytn’s stylus for a while, when I picked up the Treo stylus it felt like the Treo’s was heavier and gave a more tactile sense. Two, the slide-out keyboard started to loosen after a while causing the phone to vibrate audibly in quiet mode.  Not sure why that happened.  The phone has never been dropped.  Since I have warranty, I will likely get this looked at.  This is unacceptable.

Three, the phone comes with about 60 megabytes of storage memory.  I would have liked to have seen more memory so I can install more programs into the phone.  As of writing, I have about 5 Megabytes of storage memory left which no doubt will be taken up next time I sync the phone up to my laptop. 

Fourth, the crappy case.  Kudo to HTC for including a case with the phone but it tends to slip off my belt often.  Once it ended up under my car.  Thankfully I noticed it was missing before I drove away.  Temporarily it saved me 20 to 30 bucks but I think I’ll be purchasing a more secure case soon enough. 

Fifth, Sound Quality.  One of the first things I heard was that I sounded tinny to the other party. 

Last, no headphone jack.  I have a set of $150.00 Shure earphones which I love to use.  Unfortunately, with no headphone jack, I can’t use them. 

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

The HTC Tytn is a solid phone and despite my little rants, I’m more than satisfied with my purchase.  I’ll be waiting for a Mobile 6 update if it ever comes but I’m not in a rush to return it if it one doesn’t get released for Rogers.  I like being able to sync via bluetooth, read my email during downtime, and being able to listen to music all on my PDA. 

On a sidenote: A great addition to this phone is a freeware application called TouchPal by CoolTek.  It makes entering text quickly onto your PDA for quick SMS replies very easy.  At first it takes a little getting used to but I can enter text faster with this little app than I can using my hardware keyboard.   Check it out here.

Do You Think Too Much?

2 years ago, I found myself the victim of a theft.

Not something tangible like a bike (although someone stole that from me too a couple of years ago from my 2nd floor balcony) or my wallet.  No, it wasn’t something you could wrap your hands around but it was something that could never be returned.  I was robbed of time.

As confusing as this may sound, I was both the victim and the perpetrator of this crime but I never knew it was being committed until it was far too late.

How did this happen?  Simple.  I spent hours thinking, worrying, stressing over things that were beyond my control.  In seeking peace of mind, I found none and in fact, the very act of trying to find peace of mind through thinking ended up sabotaging any hope I had in finding it.  Ironic isn’t it?

I spent nights awake, tossing and turning in bed rewinding and replaying events as I thought they would unfold.  The more I thought about them, the worse my situation became.  It got to a point that I wasn’t sure whether I was experiencing something I thought about the night before or whether I thought about something that I would immediately experience.  It was an infinite loop which my mind could not break free of no matter how hard I tried.

Fortunately, I came across some reading material which eventually helped me find the piece of mind I so desperately needed but through the exact opposite means by which I thought I would find it.  I think George Lucas was onto something when he said “Let go, Luke.” and that was exactly what I did.

No sooner did I do that than I felt as if a massive weight was lifted off my shoulders.  I felt serene.  At peace.  I realized at once that thinking about things that are beyond our control is pointless and robs us of time.  In fact, it has more serious side effects that often manifest physically as well in the form of stress, weakened immune systems, gastro-intestinal disorders, aches & pains, etc.

The next time you find yourself stuck in an infinite loop with  thoughts you can’t control, let go.  Let go of the thoughts, let go of your need to think.  Let go of the guilt you feel for not thinking about it.  You’ll be surprised how much better you feel almost instantly.

Cheers,

Michael

Thought of the Day, Disclaimer – Read First

Thanks for popping by. Just a couple of things to get out of the way before I get things started. I made this blog more as a tongue-in-cheek look at the things that make up my life; more specifically, the thoughts I have on a day-to-day basis. Sometimes they’re deep, other times they’re shallow, sometimes they’re offensive, other times they’re encouraging. What winds up on these pages all depends on my mood for the day. I’m not responsible for any trauma you are caused or additional psychiatric expenses you incur as a result of interacting with me or anyone here.

Remember: While I hope you enjoy my posts and I encourage good, objective discussion, if you take a poke at me or anyone else personally, I’ll find out where you live and pie your face. You’ve been warned. Seriously though? Let’s keep it civil so everyone has a good time.

Mike, Over and out.