The Philippe Back Report

I am now test driving the Logitech keyboard for iPad 2 by Zagg. I had read a rave review about it and wanted to test drive it first hand.

Well, first thing is that the borders are annoying when typing. But even if they are a hassle, typing on the keyboard is fine and much faster than typing on the iPad’s on-screen keyboard.

The space to type is cramped. I don’t know if I’ll be able to type long stuff on that either. But for reporting on trade shows, making a quick letter and so on, it is a good thing to have. It coples as a protection for the device and as such it is great.

It is pretty cool to have access to the media control keys while working. I like to listen to music while working and this is a plus indeed.

Of course, the keyboard is a national keyboard, so do not expect accelerators like on the virtual keyboard. But you are then able to use all keys and accented characters directly.

The positioning of the iPad 2 on the keyboard feels solid. As I type this, I am adapting my position and it goes faster.

While typing on my lap, I had to switch the device to landscape mode and the it is easier and making more sense. Compared to a laptop, this runs cool. Some think that using a hot PC on one’s lap is bad for fertility. One problem solved then.

And while we are on that, the iPad can be placed on either side, no problem at all.My power cable is on the left of my desk and if this wasn’t possible, I would have to do a convoluted setup to be able to continue working as the device is about depleted (hey, it’s been several days since I made the last charge).

Using the keyboard arrows and shift key helps when selecting text and generally moving it around. All usual OSX shortcuts (Cmd-C, Cmd-X, Cmd-V, Cmd-Arrows) do work and help in restructuring the content.

Adding pictures right away is a big plus, it makes a lot of sense if one is attending a presentation and wants to make a report of it.

When there is a small space available, using a mouse or a trackpad is awkward and here, just reaching for the screen with one’s finger is really helpful.

I’ve been writing this on Pages and there has been no issue with all possibilities.

Switching to full screen to type would be great but is apparently not possible. Too bad. But that is a general limitation of Pages.

While we are on the subject of screen, there is a key on the top left of the keyboard which is equivalent to the home button. So, double type to get the multitask bar, triple type for (in my case) reverse display (comes handy in a dark room).

The keyboard has no backlight, so you’d have to learn key locations before being able to type without errors. I am trying this out in a dark place and it is working nicely after two lines of text.

I am very pleased with this acquisition and highly recommend it to reduce your backpack burden when on the move.

Too bad all this is in a crappy Mini and not a more capable car… Anyway, it is cool stuff. Especially the custom radio show.

Better then the iPad2 in terms of Wow! factor, meet the LED Cube:

Check out how fun this could be (no compile time, only fun, runtime)

Controlling Arduino with Squeak
http://tecnodacta.com.ar/gira/Arduino.3.rar

And Kinect comes to the mix from the same great people (note that the little red car is driven through Kinect)

Pay them a visit at:

http://tecnodacta.com.ar/gira

Cool isn’t it?

Yesterday, I got myself an Arduino experimenters kit. As a side note, the kits sold at FOSDEM come from Italy and support decent working conditions, something that is quite nice. I hope to have contributed a bit.
The kit is of good quality and there is all one may need to get started. What I do have in mind is to use the Arduino and the electronics to work on bridging a Microsoft Kinect device with Squeak Smalltalk and the Arduino. Software support exists for both of them in Squeak and it would be great to have fun activating my Lego Mindstorms through gesturing in front of a Kinect and controlling the little Lego blocks.

This is going to bring several of my ‘past lifes’ together. In fact I have the full electronics kit (including soldering iron, drill, components, and what not) that I haven’t been using for some time. Last time, I was making ISA cards for building 286-based oscilloscopes and AD/DA based boards. This means a loooong time. Anyway, ICs do not die,  they just lay there, waiting for new projects.

And now, as I have a brand new office with lots of space, I can devote a table for Arduino projects. Stay tuned, as I’ll have a number of posts describing how things are going.

Here are some pictures:

Kit Contents

The Arduino Uno board

I have had my Opel Astra J for half a year now. So I think that it is time for a little update.

In short, this car is really awesome. Well, in the configuration that I do have, meaning:

• 160HP 2.0L CDTI engine
• Ergonomic leather seats
• Bi xenon adaptative lights
• Flexride
• 18″ alloy wheels
• Color entertainment system
• Cosmo finish

What are the cool points that I would like to mention?

Lights

What comes to mind is: the bixenon lights are really a great plus. There is simply no comparison with other lighting systems. I works as adverstised and makes night driving very nice. Went from Belgium to south of France and it was really helping a lot.

Flexride

Works very well. It is like you have 3 cars in one. Tour is great on the highway or on bad roads (like we tend to have in Belgium). Normal is really good for everyday drives. Then Sport is the best piece if you want to have fun. My other car is an Audi TT 1.8T from 2000 (180HP) and the Opel Astra J is fun to drive too. A big factor for me since I have been spoiled by the TT.

Ergonomic seats

Ah, that’s very nice if you have an aching back, which I tend to have at times (hey, I made it past 41 last december). Really well finished, nice leather, good touch.

Dashboard

The dashboard is really inspiring. I love the darkmatrix finish which makes it look like “tech” but in a subtle way. I don’t like the “silver” version, it looks like a bit gross to me, hence the darkmatrix.

The instruments are the same as the on the Insigna but are better because they rearranged some buttons on the console. I tried out an Insigna but the feel is bulkier there. The color switch for the sport mode is also funny.

Sound Quality

Great. You can pump up the volume quite nicely and the equalizer helps in getting the best out of the kind of sound you listen to.

Internal “red lighting”

There are some leds here and there inside the car and it is giving a fun feeling. I like it, my wife as well.

Enough space to put real size adults at the back

And that, without them having they heads bang on the ceiling. My mother in law has some back problems and she told us that is was joy to be driven around in the car.

What disappoints me

USB – No recognition of my Blackberry mass memory, Bluethooth – No A/V streaming profile

Come on, why is that? USB keys works well. But the BlackBerry is’nt recognized. It worked okay on an Audi MMI system. Why not here. We are in 2011 guys! There is the aux plug but the I can’t control tracks from the steering wheel.

Bluetooth streaming profile isn’t there. You only get the phone link. Which is done right.

Some ‘squeaking’ at times.

I don’t know what causes it, maybe it is a thermal problem or a badly done assembly. At times, I do get a “squeaking” noise on the right side. I have to find out because it drives me mad when it happens. It doens’t happen at the moment tough. Check your car for that when you take delivery.

Rear view isn’t always easy

Given the design of the car, you get some hard times with parking in the city. Lucky me, I’ve got the parking sensors (front and rear) but sometimes, it is annoying. But that’s also related to the awesome look of the car. We can’t have everything!

Engine noise

Despite the well done soundproof interior, the engine (Diesel) is a bit too present for my tastes. If you compare it to what they have in Renaults, it is really more noisy at low speeds. And you feel it in the steering whell. We also own a Clio 1.6 DCi and the engine is really smoother and less noisy. This one feels like a gasoline car. They should improve on that front. But on raw power of course, Opel wins hands down.

Some finger-undfriendly plastics

Some plastics are too flat as far as their surface goes. So, you’ll have to clean them at times to remove the grease marks. No big deal, a concentrated liquid for cleaning windows works marvels.

Some random toughts

I wouldn’t drive this car with anything less that a 2.0 CDTI. Okay it is more expensive, more taxes, more consumption. But frankly, this is an heavy car and low emission, low HP engines are spoiling the whole experience. Don’t go there. Also, the Cosmo finish is the way to go (Sport is also nice). The mundane interiors and wheels they offer, along with no window outlines (just the plain black outline) don’t do justice to the car. All of these do not come cheap, but that’s the price to pay to have a car that can rival any Audi in driving it, and being comfortable inside.

I have had Audi A4, A6, test drove an A5 (2.7L), had some tests with BMW 320d. And frankly, I do prefer the Opel Astra J.

And the car as a good “curb presence”. People do tend to look at it, but it is not like you’ve got permanent head turner. You can indeed go to places where you would fear leaving your car on parking. And that is a good bonus.

Conclusion

So, all in all, a great car, a great experience, and good value for money. Highly recommended!