Rush at 40, Rush rocks Portland.

I know this is suposse to be a phone blog... Well the picture were taken with my Galaxy S6 edge from way up top in the Moda Center in portland, so it still has something to do with phones... some what.


I was lucky enough to see this band on Tuesday night. This was my 12th time seeing the band I have been following for as it would happen to be 40 years now. This was their r40 tour celibrating the band being together for 40+ years. Now I have seen a ton of concerts in my many days. Seen some of the biggest bands around, some of the one hit wonders as well. Now on Monday before the show if you would of asked me who was the best show I had seen I would of said, Paul McCartney, Yes and Santana. Although Rush has been my favorite band, those three shows were just that good. If you asked me today who was the best show I would say, Rush 2015 tour without a doubt, not even close. They blew away every other show I had seen.

They played for about three hours with a break in the middle. At the break the road crew switched out Neil's new modern drum set for an older style drum set like he played back in the 70's. The sound difference was amazing. plus he had all those chimes and cowbells. They played songs from every album, they started the night with their newer songs and worked their way backwards ending the night with the best version of Working Man I have heard to date.

For a band that are all in their 60's the showed no sign of age. Geddy Lee was jumping up and down on stage, my knees hurt just watching him. He hit the high notes as well if not better than he ever had, and his bass playing can't be matched. Neil Peart played flawless as always his timing was perfect, even when he switched from one drumset to the other there was not loss of awsomeness.

Now for Alex Lifeson; The man has always been on top of his game, but for some reason I would always put Santana above him. Well after this show Alex has made the top of my list. He out did himself Tuesday night. His playing alone on Working Man just blew me away!


If I had to decribe this show in just a few words they would be "I have no words" But I will use these to try. "I wish I could live it all again"

Of course no show is complete without good friends. I was lucky enough to have my best friend of many years with me for her first show. Carla is new to Rush (only been a fan for about ten years or so) She planed the whole trip out and booked the hotel, tickets and bus there and back. My hat is off to her.

I also got to finally meet a long time online friend and fellow Rush fan Patricia before the show. we three went to a pre-show party then the show and met up after.

There are 5 more shows to go, then they will be done. They say this will most likely be their last major tour. If that is true I at least got to see the best show of my life on their last tour. They may still cut a few more albums and maybe even do a few shows to promote them. If I get the chance to see them again I will, if not I can live with knowing that I seen them at their best.

Oh and I did pick up some things to remember the show

Duck out

My how times have changed

I remember back when there was black and white tv's. I remember the family getting our first color tv. It was a marvel for sure. I also remember having a AM raido that I could attach to my (at the time super cool) 3 speed bike. It was red and white. I would listen to the Carpenters on a local staion KBZY in Salem Oregon... I was cool. I would take it with me when I went strawberry picking (Not that I actually did much picking) Randy (My childhood best friend) and I would listen to it all day long. Then we really moved up in the world and my dad came home one day with a Microwave oven. It had a dial that you would turn to set the time. I remember my cousin Carol teasing us about how dinner would be ready in a minute.


If you were to go to a park for the afternoon you would be out of touch with the world all the time you were there. Even the police had to be in their cars to comunicate. My how times have changed. Here I sit in a park, on a bench next to a river. You can't even see a powerline. I am typing this out on a chromebook that is using a Wi-Fi hotspot from my phone to post this.


I have a morning dove cooing and a few other birds chirping in the background. Chipmonks and golden mantel ground squerrels are all around me. If the man fishing in the river in front of me fell in the water or had a heartattack I could call 911 for help, give them the exact GPS location and they would be here in minutes.


Every once in awhile I think its good to just sit back and see just how far we have come. Then I just wonder what my 81 year old father thinks. It is a testament to us humans, we are changing the world, as it should be. Change is the only constant.


My how things have changed

Duck out.

The Samsung wireless charger.. and 10,000 hits (Thank you)

The Samsung wireless charger seen above is a great way to charge your device. Not only does it charge your phone at about the same speed as a normal charger, it does so without having to plug the device in. There are a few things that make this a much better deal than the Nexcon charger I reviewed in my last post.. Cost isn't one of them however. This charger will set you back $50 at retail stores or you can regester your device with Samsung (Only a Samsung device that is) and you will get a 50% off code you can use to get the charger for around $25 plus shipping. But with this charger you not only get the charger, but you also get a 2Amp charger and cable with it. The Nexcon which is a lot cheaper at around $10 only comes with a short cable and you can't use a normal usb/micro usb cable with it as the micro end is a little longer than the standard cable.



But my favorite thing with this charger is the light! On the Nexcon it was like having a damn flashlight on all the time. Red when not charging and blue when it was, and even without a device sitting on it the light was on. Well Samsung put a little thought into theirs. There is no light when there isn't a device sitting on it.

Then when you sit a device on it a blue glow comes on. But the light is actually aimed down, not out like a beam. Just a soft glow like effect.

Once the device is fully charged the light glows green, and just like the blue light its aimed down. I have used it beside my bed evey night for over a week and not once was I woke by the device pinging a restart of a charge or some bright ass light.

They say you get what you pay for and in this case it is true. With the charger and longer cable I believe you are getting a good deal, and if you go through Samsung to get it, then you are getting a great deal. By far this is a better option than the Nexcon.. But you live and learn right?

I still want to try a good upright wireless charger, I don't know anyone who actually has one so if you do please let me know in the comments which one you have and how you like it.. Thanks.

Now I would like to thank you for stopping in and reading my ramblings. I should hit 10,000 hits shortly after posting this (I am only 2 away) This is only my 52nd post on here and I am humbled with the results. Now I know some bloggers get that many in a day... But they do theres as a living. Mine I just do to put my thoughts on things so you can hear my point on what I'm doing.
So once again I would like to thank you for stopping in.

Duck out

The Nexcon wireless charger and my review of it.

The Nexcon wireless charger is small portable and convenient, works really well on your desk or end table.

You just set your phone on it with or without a case on it and it conects and starts charging. It charges as fast as a normal charger does and maybe a little faster.. but not enough to rave about that.

It how ever has two faults that I just can't stand and that is why above I stated that it would work great at your desk or end table and not your nightstand. There is a light that is ALWAYS on wether the thing is charging or not. Red if not charging and blue if it is. Just watch the video below to see what I mean. The damn thing is actually brighter than what you see in the video. Plus it (as it should) stops charging when the device is full, but it starts charging again when the device drops 1% so everytime you hit 99% charge you hear the phone acknowlage the starting of the charge and the phone lights up. This happens often and thats why it only lasted one night on my nightstand.It was a one nightstand (sorry I could not stop myself on that one.)

Now I am using this charger on my "Phone desk" that is in my bedroom. I sleep in the dark.. because I'm crazy like that I guess, so even on my desk the light bothered me. So I made an adjustment to the disc that works perfectly and without knowing it was there one wouldn't ever notice it.

Yes thats right, its a high-tech strip of electrical tape cut in half lengthwise. No light no fuss and I can sleep in peace knowing that there wont be a light coming on all damn night. I charge my phone beside my bed at night, but I don't use the adaptive charger that came with it. I use one that was for the Galaxy S5 so its slower. I think that always charging your device at a high rate might put a extra amount of ware on the battery.. I could be wrong, but I don't think so. I use the adaptive charger when I need a quick charge.. Which really isn't very often.


I plan to pickup a upright wireless charger and give that a try. I will do some shopping around and read some reviews on them so I get the one thats right for my needs.


Duck is out

Simple ways to have it all with the new Galaxy S6/Edge

We all know there is no removable battery on Samsung's two new flagship devices and we all know there is no expandable storage. Well here is a couple ways to get around that.

I have only had short battery life once with my S6 edge. I had it in my front pocket while at work emptying a truck and stocking shelves for Target. Other than that one time my battery has lasted all day. I'm getting 3 hours of on screen time with no issues. In fact the longer I have it the better the battery is getting. Now for those who need a little extra juice for the day, pick up a cheap external battery pack. I have a large one for when I travel and a small one I can easily put in my pocket. The small one is perfect for carrying around. It's called a "lipstick charger" due to it's size and shape. It cost under $6 US and is 2600 milliamps

I haven't used it yet but I'm sure I will as I tend to get out and about more as the weather gets warmer.


Now as far as extra storage goes thats pretty simple as well. OTG (On The Go) Now these come in many sizes and shapes some are just a cable that you plug into Your device and then at the other end you have a full sized USB plug. You can then use an adapter and us a SD card or a Micro SD card, Then there are those that have the adapters built in, these tend to be bulky though. I have a cable one somewhere around here But I prefur this little jewel I picked up for under $10 US.

You just have to slap your Micro SD card in it and plug it into your device.Plus it also has a full sized USB plug, you leave the Micro card in and plug it into your computer and you can then transfer betwwen the two.


Both of these together cost less than $15 on Amazon and for that price you get to have your cake and eat it too.



Duck signing out.... But I will be back with some other accessories and tips soon, wireless charging is up next.

Living on the Edge, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge from T-Mobile

Now when I do a review I'm not doing it because someone sent me a device to test and write a review. No one is paying, I'm not getting anything in return for posting about any of the things I do review. Which might explain why I don't do a ton of reviews. I pay for my devices just like you do. I think it lets me give a more open and honest review.


I pre-ordered the S6 Edge from T-Mobile on the 27th of March. I called in at 3:30 am when I got up to go to work. By the time I got home I had already recieved notice that it had shipped. I pony'd up and got the overnight shiiping and it was in my hands on Monday. (UPS doesn't deliver on Saturdays here anyway) Once I saw the device on all the blogs and videos posted from Mobile World Congress (MWC) I had to have it. I read and watched everything I could find on the device. If I'm going into debt for something I like to know as much as I can. I knew I was going to be giving up a few things, like SD card slot for more storage and a removable/replaceable battery. Also that the battery wasn't going to last as long as it does with my Note 4. But there are ways around those short comings, and they are short comings. OTG cable and sticks are an easy way to move things around like music amd movies and other files. Portable battery packs have been out for a long time as well. With these options I was confident I would be able to live with my choice.


My first impressions of the device were as I expected. I love the look of the phone and its "six appeal". Lets face it this phone is down right sexy. I was lucky enough to have that first Tuesday off from work so I was able to play with the device and set it up. Normally I can only go a day if that on stock UI's no matter who's it is, and if I had to leave it as it came out of the box touch wiz would of drove me crazy already. But Samsung has a new twist, you can change theames without changing the whole UI. I am at this time using the "Avengers" theame that you have to download from Galaxy apps. It's not perfect but it has allowed me to hang this long without pulling my hair out.


The Galaxy S6 Edge has some cool extras to go with that sexy look. One is called "Peoples Edge"

You pick 5 of the people you contact most and add them to the list. Each contact has a different color. You can change the order in which they are in if you want purple in the middle you just long press and slide it there and it will switch with the yellow that was there before. Changing the contacts is just as easy. Long press on a contact and slide it to the top of the screen where the trash can is and the contact is removed from the list. The color circle will remain waiting for you to replace that contact Bad contact I smite you In the photo above I have removed one of my Edge people and added my Gear S watch, it was so I could do a short video which will be added below. Angie you will be added back asap I promise.


The edge also has a cool feature for when your contacts in the "Peoples Edge" call. If you have the phone laying face down and one of the edge contacts calls or text you the side that you have chosen (Left or right) will lite up and if not on silent it will ring as well. Here is a short video of the Edge in action.

Samsung chose not to go with the Snapdragon processor and went with their own in house SoC and I'm happy with the results. Its snappy and handles anything I through at it. There are rumors going around about the Snapdragon 810 over heating.. whether it is true or not I can't say.. Not my job, not my worry. I just know that the Exynos 7420 will do the job just fine. No matter how you feel about benchmarks you can't dispute that the new Galaxy flagship flies. Here are 2 of the test that I ran AnTuTu and Quadrent. This phone is 100% stock, its just how the tests came out.

Now for my favorite feature of the phone, its the main reason I wanted it and for that matter it was the main reason I wanted the Note 4 as well. The camera. Hands down the best camera on a phone to date that I've owned! at close range it out does even my Canon Rebel. I haven't had the chance to head out at night/evening to test the low light function yet as I don't do cold if I don't have to and living in Oregon at 3700 feet its still cold when the sun isn't out. But in daylight... Oh baby.

No settings where changed on these shots, basically just point and shoot.


So you've read what I like and the features that standout to me. Here are the things that I don't really like about the device. Holding the device in your hand it seems slick, like it could slip out of your hand at any second. It never did, but it did feel as though it could happen while pulling it out of your pocket. Which brings me to the one that bugged the HELL out of me for days. Now I ordered this thinking it wasn't going to ship for over a week. S o hadn't ordered any cases for it. I always have a case or two waiting for when the device arives. Well as you know the device came on the following Monday. No stores even sold cases for it yet. I could order them from Amazon or Ebay but they wouldn't get here in time. So I thought I would just tough it out and go with the phone being naked. Bad idea, bad bad idea. No I didn't ever drop it, but.... The phone was coming on all the time in my pocket and I even managed to take about a dozen photos of the inside of my pocket I'm happy to report I didn't have any lint in there. The battery would of course take a magor hit from this. I finally stopped in at Best Buy and talked to the store manager and he found a clear case that wasn't street dated so he could sell it to me. I also am now using the flip cover holster for my Note 4 so I can carry it on my belt (which is where I like to have my phone anyway. I have a case and a holster coming first part of the week so I should be good to go from now on. Oh and the battery life was fantastic after making those two changes. I am running the screen somewhere around 75 to 80% brightness. The battery is lasting all day without a problem.


This is the first device that Samsung has added wireless charging to right out of the box. I have never used that feature before but the chargers are dirt cheap and you can get them from web sites like Amazon. I found one that was only $10 and I also seen them for $40. Samsung has one that looks great that runs $50 but you can cut that in half by regestering your device with Samsung. They will send you a code to get 50% off any accessory under $50... Well the wirless charger is actually $49.99 so you win! I am going to hold on to my code for a bit and see what other things Samsung puts out for the S6 and S6 edge.


So after a full week of playing with the phone what are my thoughts.
I love it, once I got the kinks like the in to pocket deal taken care of I have nothing but praise for the phone. Will this bring Samsung back on top of the heap? I don't know... I only hope they keep making devices like the Edge and the Note. They are what I like. I am not using Samsung because they are the biggest cell phone manufacture, I'm using them because they are making the phones that I want. I'm not going to buy a phone because Joe Blow says its the best or to keep up with the Jones'.



Duck signing out

LG G Pad 7 My thoughts

Okay, first let me say I have the bestest grandson in the world, so when he said he wanted a tablet I talked to his mother. (The bestest daughter in the world I might add) She said thay had looked at some od the cheap tablets but weren't to sure about the quality of them. Which I'm glad that she just didn't buy one because it was cheap. So anyway a few weeks later I came across a brand new LG G Pad 7 V410 unlocked at a really good price so I ordered it with the thought of giving it to my grandson.

This tablet has a Snapdragon 400 quadcore processor, 1280X800 screen, 4000mAh battery, 16GB internal storage with SD card slot to add up to 32GB more storage.Its running 4.4.2 Kitkat out of the box. As it is unlocked I can use my sim from T-Mobile that I have in my Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 in it. I just had to call TMO (T-Moblie) and get some help changing some apn numbers.

Now this is no beast, I didn't get it because it was the latest and greatest. I got it for an 8 year old child who has more than earned it. I thought it would be a great gift.. But its a gift he wont be getting, because grandpa found even a better deal for him, but more on the in a minute. So I have been putting this through its paces. Ive ran a few benchmark tests and as was stated, its no beast. It did fair for what it is. Some of the video test it stutterd throuhout the test. Where as my Note 10.1 runs through it smooth. Again, I wasn't expecting top purformance from it. The screen actually looks pretty good, viewing angles are really good, colors seem fairly accurate.

As I have the Galaxy Note 4 and the Galaxy Note 10.1 I am use to having a physical home button. I haven't had the on screen buttons since I gave away my Nexus 7 2014. But it didn't take any time to get use to them again.The rear camera is a 5mp and the front has a 1.3mp. Both are a little grainy but will work for skype or just a quick picture to pass to someone. I wouldn't use either as a go to camera.

Over all this is a great tablet for someone who will use it as a ereader/surf the web kind of thing. Its small and lite so you can take it with you on the go. My daughter will love it.... Yes I'm going to give it to my daughter some time down the road as I picked up a brand new Nook 9" 32GB tablet for the the grandson for only $45. Now I mean still in the box never opened buaght from a Target store (On clearence with employee discount and red card savings) Its normal retail price was $180. I'm sure he will be more than happy with that big ol screen and a $10 gift card to the Google play store.

I know it sounds like I am spoiling him, but truthfully the kid makes some pretty damn good choices for being 8 years old. The way he cares for his little sister and his classmates makes me proud. His parents are doing a bang up job with him and it shows.


Besides his little sister who rules the roost in that house Who has to have her own way or all will pay will have a tablet she can use, I think she will get the Kindle fire I gave my daughter last year.... Now to see about that son in-law...

Duck signing out