telling stories based on data
Signal to noise ratio is engineering jargon. It is also used in everyday speech. The signal is that which is important, interesting and relevant. The noise is everything else.
FilterJoe has always been about increasing the signal to noise ratio of the internet.
What I found after 3 years of blogging is that only one type of FilterJoe post had a strong enough signal to be noticed:
Continue reading “Where has FilterJoe Has Taken Me? Where Am I Taking FilterJoe?”
People tend to optimize their next purchase based on the worst feature of their prior purchase. That is clearly why I bought a Blackberry in 2008 after experiencing a phone with terrible voice quality and numerous dropped calls.
Blackberry delivered. I experienced voice quality comparable to that of a land line during my 3.5 years of Blackberry (8320, 9700) ownership. The siren calls from iPhone and Android devices had no effect on me during this time. By nearly all accounts, iPhones were great pocket computers with lousy phones and Android devices required too much fiddling to suit my tastes.
Then the iPhone 4s came out, promising decent voice call quality, improved battery life, and a better notification system. In other words, a great pocket computer and a great communication device. I decided to switch, and I wrote about this decision here.
Now that I’ve been using an iPhone 4s for nearly 2 months, I’d like to revisit my decision. Is the iPhone 4s performing as expected? How does it compare to the Blackberry 9700 I used for 2 years? Do I have any regrets? You may find some of my answers surprising.
Continue reading “Blackberry vs iPhone 4s (After Two Months of Use)”
Normally $379, through November 28 you can buy the Kindle DX at Amazon
It’s a great deal if you want a larger E Ink display. It’s also a chance to support FilterJoe with commissions from Amazon for each DX (or anything else) purchased from Amazon after clicking on this link.
FilterJoe isn’t a deal site but I’ve been surprised about the number of clicks to the Nook deal from yesterday’s posting. So I’ll continue posting all the Black Friday deals I can find on products or services I’ve discussed. Maybe I’ll make this an annual tradition.
I want to wish a Happy Thanksgiving and thanks to all my readers. Since early October, FilterJoe has had over 5,000 pageviews per week. Thank You!
Two products I’ve discussed on FilterJoe are selling at the lowest prices I’ve ever seen on Black Friday: 1Password (50% off) and the Nook Simple Touch ($79).
Continue reading “Black Friday Specials 1Password and Nook Simple Touch”
The Nook Simple Touch received a major software update yesterday. Barnes and Noble’s communications around this update were confusing, and they have not published a detailed list of changes and bug fixes. News outlets have added to the confusion by parroting the Barnes and Noble press release without doing any fact checking.
In this post I’ll lay out the facts about the update, and then I’ll discuss my opinion about these changes in the context of my prior review of the Nook Simple Touch.
I like my Blackberry 9700. It’s a great communication device with outstanding voice quality and messaging. Unfortunately, I’ve managed to submerge it in water once and drop it on sidewalks a few times. Remarkably, it has few issues so far. But given the water damage, I’m thinking this Blackberry may soon quit working altogether. Time to upgrade.
I briefly considered the impressive Galaxy S II, but I prefer smaller (single hand) devices and more polished operating systems. An inexpensive grandfathered plan gives me an incentive to stick with Blackberry on T-mobile, but the iPhone’s 336 PPI Retina display beckons. Blackberry Bold 9900 or iPhone 4s. Which one?
iPhone 4s. No contest. Here’s why.
Continue reading “Blackberry vs. iPhone: No Longer a Contest”
Using a dedicated portable reading device is one of the best ways I know to read digital content without distraction. But selecting an appropriate device can be confusing. My guess is you won’t get the most suitable device for your needs if you ask, “Which is the best e-reader?” Try instead asking the following set of questions:
Continue reading “Which is the Best E-reader? The Nook Simple Touch?”
Just about everyone uses AA batteries. But few people use the best AA batteries, or have even heard of them.
What are these batteries? Why are they so great? Where can you buy them? What charger do you need to buy?
Continue reading “Best AA Batteries That You Never Heard Of”
Over the past few years, excitement has been growing for the idea of an “everything device” that you carry in your pocket. Why carry many separate physical and electronic devices for your phone, address book, calendar, planner, GPS, books, magazines, etc.? An iPhone, Blackberry, or Android-based smartphone will do it all.
There’s just one problem.
Interruptions.
Continue reading “Smartphones: The Most Pervasive Interruption Technology Ever”
Two recent incidents highlight the risks of storing passwords in the cloud with LastPass. The official reports from LastPass are here and here. I have updated my popular Which Password Manager post to include a description of these incidents.
Continue reading “Risks of Storing Passwords in the Cloud with LastPass”