Edited on the fly
Monday, February 22, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
my reviews from the cigar.com house blend sampler
I've always liked cigars, but I wanted to expand my palette so I bought the house blend sampler from cigar.com. It's a pretty economic way of trying out a bunch of new cigars. Here are my reviews in the order that I tried them.Cigar.com Cuban Label **.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=276
A medium smoke with a bit of peppery spice. Slightly reminiscent of Garcia Vega, which makes sense due to GV's cuban seed tobacco. Of course this smoke is much smoother and tastier. The quality of wrap leaves a bit to be desired as it falls apart a bit after cutting, also ashes a bit messy. Starts weak, but great by the middle of a corona. Two and a half out of five. Erin gives it a 0 out of 5 on the headache scale.Cigar.com Corojo Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=508
A nice full-bodied smoke with an oaky touch. The quality is better than the cuban label, leaving no messy ashes or pieces on the cut end. Erin says it is a pleasant smelling smoke with a 0 of 5 on the headache scale.Cigar.com Blue Label ****
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=42
Comparable to the Perdomo Fresco Connecticut label, this smoke is medium bodied with less spice than the Cuban label. This was was a torpedo rather than a robusto and had a very smooth draw. Erin sneezes and gives it a 1 of 5 for headache.Cigar.com Cameroon Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=292
The Cameroon Label cigar is a very deep, rich smoke. Hints of wood and leather accompany a very smooth draw. There is a bit of spice at the beginning, but it mellows out and provides consistent flavor for the rest of the stick. I give it a 3.5 out of 5. Erin says they're no headache factor, but there was a sneeze or two.Cigar.com Purple Label ***
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=277
This smoke started mild with a bit of spice. In the middle it mellowed out and exceeded my expectations. The long filler made this smoke better than the Cuban label, even though it had a similar flavor. Erin reports no headache. Solid three out of five.Cigar.com Brazilian Label ***
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=607
The Brazilian label came as a corona instead of a robusto, and produced a smooth draw with a less potent smoke. This is a good thing because this cigar has a dark and creamy smoke with esperesso and chocolate tones along with a hint of leather. There's a sweetness to the finish that other cigars in the sampler don't have. Erin does not report a headache. Another three out of five.
Cigar.com Red Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=278
I had especially high expectations for the Red Label cigar. I'm a big fan of dark maduro wrapper cigars. This smoke lived up to my expectations for a house blend maduro. It started with a light draw and a bit of spice, but developed into a deep flavor with a hint of sweetness. By the nub it was dark and rich with a slow draw. Erin says it ranks 0 out of 5 for headache. I give it a 3.5 out of 5.As an addition to my order, I also got the "90+ rated sampler". For comparison, every cigar in that group would rank at least a 3, most gaining a 4 or 4.5. I will re-order several of these house blend cigars, maybe another sampler. I've even gone so far as to purchase a humidor.
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=276
A medium smoke with a bit of peppery spice. Slightly reminiscent of Garcia Vega, which makes sense due to GV's cuban seed tobacco. Of course this smoke is much smoother and tastier. The quality of wrap leaves a bit to be desired as it falls apart a bit after cutting, also ashes a bit messy. Starts weak, but great by the middle of a corona. Two and a half out of five. Erin gives it a 0 out of 5 on the headache scale.Cigar.com Corojo Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=508
A nice full-bodied smoke with an oaky touch. The quality is better than the cuban label, leaving no messy ashes or pieces on the cut end. Erin says it is a pleasant smelling smoke with a 0 of 5 on the headache scale.Cigar.com Blue Label ****
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=42
Comparable to the Perdomo Fresco Connecticut label, this smoke is medium bodied with less spice than the Cuban label. This was was a torpedo rather than a robusto and had a very smooth draw. Erin sneezes and gives it a 1 of 5 for headache.Cigar.com Cameroon Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=292
The Cameroon Label cigar is a very deep, rich smoke. Hints of wood and leather accompany a very smooth draw. There is a bit of spice at the beginning, but it mellows out and provides consistent flavor for the rest of the stick. I give it a 3.5 out of 5. Erin says they're no headache factor, but there was a sneeze or two.Cigar.com Purple Label ***
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=277
This smoke started mild with a bit of spice. In the middle it mellowed out and exceeded my expectations. The long filler made this smoke better than the Cuban label, even though it had a similar flavor. Erin reports no headache. Solid three out of five.Cigar.com Brazilian Label ***
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=607
The Brazilian label came as a corona instead of a robusto, and produced a smooth draw with a less potent smoke. This is a good thing because this cigar has a dark and creamy smoke with esperesso and chocolate tones along with a hint of leather. There's a sweetness to the finish that other cigars in the sampler don't have. Erin does not report a headache. Another three out of five.
Cigar.com Red Label ***.5
http://www.cigar.com/cigars/viewcigar.asp?brand=278
I had especially high expectations for the Red Label cigar. I'm a big fan of dark maduro wrapper cigars. This smoke lived up to my expectations for a house blend maduro. It started with a light draw and a bit of spice, but developed into a deep flavor with a hint of sweetness. By the nub it was dark and rich with a slow draw. Erin says it ranks 0 out of 5 for headache. I give it a 3.5 out of 5.As an addition to my order, I also got the "90+ rated sampler". For comparison, every cigar in that group would rank at least a 3, most gaining a 4 or 4.5. I will re-order several of these house blend cigars, maybe another sampler. I've even gone so far as to purchase a humidor.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
still searching for The One Device to rule them all
So I've used my Palm Zire 72s for a LONG time.
It's done everything from write papers, to keep assignments organized, to playing music and browsing the web. The SDIO wifi card I have for it has apparently stopped working and it no longer does a lot of the things I want out of a portable device. I've soldered the headphone connector twice now, and if it breaks again I'm going to replace it.
In preparation for this replacement I'm looking for a new device that fits my needs.-Plays music. I would need either an SD card reader OR sync to iTunes. I currently have playlists set up in iTunes that I dump onto my stack of SD cards and carry around my music and podcasts that way. It would be really nice to get the metadata back into iTunes (ratings, playcount, last played) but it's not essential-WiFi. Though not completely ubiquitous, you can get wifi almost everywhere and it's almost always free.-Not a cell phone. I'm not paying a monthly fee for a device. I have a firm standing on this. A device is not a service and I won't pay for a subsidy to the original cost of the device. One device below will break this rule, but is available unlocked.-Web browser. I want to be able to hop on the 'net and google stuff. Facebook, google voice and Gmail are a must. Google docs would be nice. (This blog post was composed in google docs)-VOIP. This is not a necessity, but it would be smart if I could make calls using the wifi connection. I'd like to tether a voip account to my google voice number if possible.So far I've come up with a list of candidates that fit all of these needs in some respects. Here they are in no particular order.Google Nexus One, unlocked without a GSM SIM card $529
The Nexus One does everything I could ask, with the possibility that voip would be a pain because it's a phone. It's also the most expensive device on the list, so this is a very unlikely choice.
Pros - VERY fast, Google integration, It has a nice camera
Cons - It's a phone, Cost, doesn't sync with iTunesApple iPod Touch 8 GB $199 - 32 GB $299
The iPod Touch meets all the requirements, with some weirdness in the browser department. Apple products don't support Adobe Flash and that introduces a world of hurt on some websites. But, most of those websites have done a good job of making a version of the site that works in mobile safari thanks to the iPhone. The app store is also locked down, only apple approved software.
Pros - Probably the cheapest device unless I want the bigger one, syncs with iTunes, more apps available, popular device with plentiful support
Cons - Locked down app store, no Flash, no removable storageNokia n810 Internet Tablet $229
The Nokia is a great device, if you know what you're looking for. There is a voip app, web browser with flash lite, and it works great with google docs. It has removable storage, but it's not a straight SD card so I'd be buying media. I've also read reviews that the media features are a little clunky, but so is my palm.
Pros - Adobe Flash support, removable storage, browser does google docs, GPS
Cons - Obscure device with questionable support, fewer appsArchos 5 Android tablet $389
This is basically an android phone without a camera, or the android marketplace.
Pros - Android, 160 GB, GPS (subscription)
Cons - No access to the android marketplace, without google integration the Android OS doesn't mean much, physical disk
Palm Lifedrive Used on ebay "buy it now" $105 bids slightly lower
This device would fit my needs, it has built in wifi and does everything my Zire72s did when the card was working. It may be cheap, but it's also used and the hard drive is a physical disk instead of flash memory. If I happened to win one for $50 or so, it might happen.
Pros - Cheap, same basic workflow as my current system
Cons - Obsolete, used, spinning disk is just waiting to failI don't really know why more device manufacturers aren't making devices that fit into this category. I guess going for the cheap-ass customer doesn't pay off in the long run. But making something useful with the same hardware you use on your smartphone handsets and selling it stand-alone could be a way to build a user base among the masses, just like Apple did. I'm leaning heavily toward the iPod Touch because it's a popular device that comes with a warranty and has a robust community around it. There were days when I wanted to be an outsider interested in the niche stuff, but I was also a mac guy for a long time because Apple products usually "just work".
Monday, February 1, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
So long crew, nice being with you. RIP Captain 11.
I used to watch Captain 11 every day when I got home from school. I always wanted to open the treasure chest.
http://www.keloland.com/captain11/
http://www.keloland.com/captain11/
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Eventually cell companies will learn that they are just a dumb pipe for data, hopefully soon.
Years ago now I had a revelation when looking at my cell phone bill. I was paying $40 per month for 8 state roaming and around 1000 minutes, I had used a total of 140 minutes in the month the bill was for. Once my contract was up, I dropped that service and ported my number to a prepaid phone. Virgin Mobile had its downsides, but despite spotty coverage in SW MN (Sprint network) it was less than half of my old bill with the same usage.
Eventually I'd like to see the whole contract model disappear. You pay the same monthly fee whether or not you have a phone that is still subsidized. Right now T-Mobile offers plans that allow you to "bring your own phone" and actually pay LESS than the contract plans. The exact same situation I went through with Virgin Mobile.
http://mashable.com/2010/01/19/billshrink/
Hopefully devices like the Nokia N900 and Google's Nexus One can push the transition along.
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/01/kafka-nexus-one
T-Mobile doesn't provide any service in SD, so we're stuck for now. Maybe I'll get a Nexus One and use it without a SIM card. At least it would be a big leap from my Palm Zire 72.
Eventually I'd like to see the whole contract model disappear. You pay the same monthly fee whether or not you have a phone that is still subsidized. Right now T-Mobile offers plans that allow you to "bring your own phone" and actually pay LESS than the contract plans. The exact same situation I went through with Virgin Mobile.
http://mashable.com/2010/01/19/billshrink/
Hopefully devices like the Nokia N900 and Google's Nexus One can push the transition along.
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/01/kafka-nexus-one
T-Mobile doesn't provide any service in SD, so we're stuck for now. Maybe I'll get a Nexus One and use it without a SIM card. At least it would be a big leap from my Palm Zire 72.
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