Nexus 7 Aluminium Keyboard and Case

Mini Laptop?

Just a quick review of a new case I got for my Nexus this week.
The case is available from several outlets, but Infinite Zone sell it for the very good price of £13.99 and delivered it two days after my order.
This review is going to be quite easy, it one of the "does what it says on the tin" kind of situations. This keyboard is good quality, similar to a high end laptop although obviously much smaller. It connects easily via Bluetooth and is therefore completely wireless and doesn't need to touch the Nexus 7 in order for it to work.  The keyboard needs a separate charger which can be a problem - I am going to investigate some form of "Y" lead to split the normal micro USB into two.
Normally, you sit the nexus 7 on top of the keyboard which makes what is basically a small laptop. I thought that I would miss a mouse or touch-pad, but actually it is very easy just to touch the screen when you need to.
As a keyboard, I would rate it as 8/10, the only limiting factor is the smaller form factor, but unless you want to carry a large keyboard around with you, I dont see how this could be improved. The keyboard also makes a very good nightstand with the Nexus at just the right angle for bedside clock, if that tickles your fancy.
As a case, it is very good. The style of the cover is identical to the Nexus 7 so you effectively get a double sided Nexus 7 that can cope with most of the rigours that the Nexus is likely to encounter when in your pocket of bag. The Nexus clips into the cover but is easily unclipped. It does add to the bulk quite a lot, making the combined tablet and case 20mm thick as opposed to 10.5mm for just the Nexus. It does mean that if you use the Nexus as a normal tablet and just use the cover for protection when not in use, then you will be using the beautifully thin and light Nexus on its own, a definite advantage compared to other case designs.
Weight is also a factor, the combined tablet and case are 550g compared to just 340g for the Nexus on its own. I don't see this as an issue, as the combined weight isn't too bad and you wouldn't really notice it when you are carrying it around. Its a different story when you are using the tablet though, but as I have already said, you use the tablet completely uncovered so it isn't really a problem.
As a case, I would rate this as 8/10 - it provides good protection but could be lighter, which would probably mean it would be as good as a cover!
So, two scores of 8/10 would surely mean that I give this case 8/10 overall, but I would actually go one higher and say 9/10. The whole concept of a mini laptop and also the very high build quality without adding to the cost make this cover a steal.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Slim-Mobile-Bluetooth-Wireless-Aluminum-Keyboard-Case-for-Google-Nexus-7-/390528385359?ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:GB:3160

Aftershokz SportZ M2

The headphones come with a great case with storage for
cables etc.

I often have headphones on when I am cycling and always wear them when I am running. I aren't aware of any problems this has caused when cycling, but that might be because they are nearly always only used so I can hear and make phone calls and text messages.
Running is a different issue though, and I do like to have a strong beat with often quite loud music playing. This does mean that I cant hear and respond to my environment which can lead to safety issues.
I decided to pool together some gift money that I got this Christmas and but a pair of bone conducting headphones. These work by placing a transducer directly on the jawbone which transmits the vibrations to the ear without having to block the ear to other sound.
Aftershokz have made a bone conducting headphone for a while now and they have just launched two new models, a bluetooth one and also their Aftershokz Sportz M2.
I tried to have a look at the headphones in two branches of Evans Cycles, but neither had them in stock, in fact they did not know that Evans stocked them. This meant I had to order them online. I aren't a fan of Evans online service - they are often the cheapest and delivery is free but it always irks me that they charge extra for a fast delivery when in fact all they do is put it in the post later for the free service. I ordered the headphones last Monday, got an email saying they had been dispatched yesterday and they came today. Why couldn't they have just dispatched them sooner?
As I am waiting for a new phone, I wont be able t test them for a while, but they do sound good and I can hear what is happening around me when I wear them, which is what I wanted. My wife reports that they are quite loud and has asked me to turn them down a couple of times so obviously other people can hear you and they probably wouldn't be much good in an office environment! Once I've had chance to test them properly, I will report back!

My Bubble Wasn't Protected

After falling off my road bike and smashing my iphone 4 rear screen a couple of years ago, I took out an insurance policy with Protect My Bubble so that I would be covered for any future damage or loss.
Actually, it only cost £18 to repair the phone, the back comes off in a surprisingly easy way (just two screws, and on my phone they were normal Philips although Apple have now "encrypted" them to a weird Pentalobe to increase customer frustration)
Anyway, the iphone5 failed to appear as Apple were extracting some more revenue by pretending they had upgraded the iphone4 by adding a letter S to the name, so I decided it was time to jump ship and go over to Android. The Galaxy S2 didn't disappoint and I have been very pleased with it. It is really robust, its dropped it many times without issue, not even a scratch. The build is certainly very plasticy but that is the very reason that it stands up to so much abuse.
On a morning I have a set routine which is my way of making sure nothing is left at home. My phone, wallet and headphone pouch go into the back left pocket of my cycling jacket. The other day this went wrong, and somehow when I got to school (a fifteen minute journey), the phone had gone.
My wife retraced the route, but the phone had gone. Time to ring Protect My Bubble!
They didn't seem to know who I was, even when I gave them an account number, but eventually I was put through to a claims department. They sent me an email with some forms to fill in. They said I had to get the phone blocked and get a crime number from the police. Of course, the police wouldn't give a crime number because it was a lost phone not a crime. They also wanted proof of purchase, but didn't accept that I didn't have this. I've had an O2 contract for ten years and upgraded regularly, getting any documentation emailed to me. Protect My Bubble wouldn't accept a forwarded email so I have to wait for O2 to send me an paper copy of the phone invoice, scan it and email it to them.
It took five days before I had a phone call from them and they said they were ringing to just go through the details of my claim.
I told them what had happened again, and they said they would be in touch. Two days later I got a letter saying they wouldn't cover me because my written statement said that the phone was in my trouser pocket whilst my verbal account said it was in my jacket!
I then Google'd Protect My Bubble and came across hundreds of similar accounts, whole web sites and even a whole Watchdog episode about them, all saying that they renege on paying out at the slightest reason and even when you successfully appeal, they then take six months to pay out.
My advice to anyone insured with them is to either switch companies, or put the payments into a glass jar until you need it!
Ive now ordered a Nexus 4, which has the benefit of when Im out of my contract, my payments will halve, (3 currently do a fifteen pound unlimited data plan), so the savings will also go into the jar so I can still upgrade every year!
Oh, and please tell everyone about this post so they learn all about how protected your bubble actually is!

Great beer and a bit of a bug!

Haven't got my s2 as I dropped it on  the way to work this morning, so I'm using the nexus 7 to take a pic of this lurvely RCH Old Slug stout which is on sale at the Cricketers in Horbury. Its a really nice pint and I intended to write a longer post until I saw the photo!
It would seem that the nexus seven takes photos in mirror image, great for web chatting but not good for using it as a camera.

Addendum - just loaded the blog post on my Chromebook - seems the photo is correctly shown when you post it!

Creating Calendar events by importing CSV files on the Chromebook

Ive used Google Calendar since it was released and now have several calendars which are fully populated. I have a work calendar which has all my school lessons, meetings etc and a separate calendar for non work items. I add calendars for theme of the week and others as they occur.
Setting up a calendar with many similar repeating items is quite easy when you apply a little thinking to the process.
In the past, I have used Excel to create the events for one week. Given five lessons a day with a mentor period and also morning meetings there can be thirty or so events.
This page has further details on how to set up your spreadsheet and which column headings you can use:
http://support.google.com/calendar/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=45656
Basically, the minimum headings that make sense are:

• Subject
• Start Date
• Start Time
• End Date
• End Time

The trick with a work schedule for a school is to the use copy and paste to repeat the events over the whole school year. Adjust the dates either manually or using a formula such as "=a2+7" to add seven days onto the previous one.

Select the dates with a formula and copy them to the clipboard, then use "paste special" and paste values only. This gets rid of any formula which is essential before the next step.

Typically each half term lasts for between four and eight weeks. I manually edit the list to remove the dates when we are off.

Save the file and then we are ready for the next step.

Export the file as a Comma Separated Value file which will have a .csv file extension.

The wonderful thing about Google spreadsheets and the Chromebook is that all of this is possible and can be done just as easily as using a desktop Windoze machine running Excel!

Now we have to get the CSV file into Google Calendar. It couldn't really be easier, on Google Calendar, goto "settings", and scroll to the bottom of the page. Select Import calendar and browse for your CSV file. Select which calendar you want it imported to, then click import. Be very careful because you are about to import a lot of events and they will have to be manually deleted one by one if you get the wrong calendar - ouch!

My wife and I both have a work and home calendar and have shared the calendars with each other so we can edit events. I have the calendar widget on my Galaxy S2 screen and also on my Nexus 7 homescreen.

If we are at a meeting and its overrunning then we just adjust the times and then we each know what is happening. Weve even been known to add a "Pub" event to each others calendar when we have some spare time and fancy a pint.

Absolutely delighted that the whole process is even easier on Google spreadsheets and the Chromebook than it was on "old gen" hardware. Spot on Google!