Perfect for when your password is QWERTY

Two weeks ago I finally finished my sentence with the Samsung Sway.  While it looked great, had a very slim size, and cost little, the call quality was pretty terrible.  Call quality is not easy to test at kiosks, and I just assumed all cell phones nowadays had great audio quality.  Oops.  Anyway, I opted this time to get a phone with a nice display, good call quality, and a QWERTY keyboard.

I had planned to get a Samsung Rogue, but just 8 months after release the Rogue was discontinued.  WTF?!  I heard it had freezing problems and that the AMOLED screens were hard to come by, but this was still surprising.  Although I could get a Rogue at a store, I decided instead to get the replacement Reality.

Red-headed stepchild

The Reality is smaller, but other than that, it seems to be inferior to the Rogue in many ways.  The screen is good, but nowhere near as good as the Rogue’s, and the data transfer is slower.  I still think it’s a pretty good phone, though.  I chose the dark City Red color for that business outside, party inside look.

Wetsuit material, I think

I also outfitted my Reality with a plastic cover and a Body Glove.  With Kiwi around, the phone needs all the armor it can get.  I am very picky about electronic coverings, and I always put the screen protectors on before I use the device (yeah, I am that guy).  I even fogged up the bathroom with steam from the shower first to ensure a tight seal.  Unfortunately, the Screenguardz I bought were just terrible.  The hard cover seemed like a good idea, but it would not seal properly around the edges.  I ended up scrapping the Screenguardz and just buying some cheap protectors from Verizon, and these protectors went on perfectly.  You’d think with a name like Screenguardz the protector would be just good but this was not the case at all.

I only hate the move because of the NY-Miami rivalry and the whole Pat Riley thing, but I believe Lebron made the right choice.  Now the decision to do a 1-hour special was almost as bad as Dan Gilbert’s angry (possibly drunken) letter, but that is another matter.  Teams trade their stars and no one ever cares about how the stars feel.  Lebron did a lot for Cleveland, and I don’t think Cleveland did enough (on the court) for Lebron.  As for talk that people won’t respect him as much, I don’t think it will be that bad.  Do people not think Kevin Garnett is great?  I guess Lebron would be more legendary if he did it all himself, but he is going to put up monster numbers next season and if the Heat win multiple titles it will really ease the sting of critics.  Damn those lucky fair-weather Heat fans!

As for the Knicks, I think they made the right decision in clearing cap space.  The bad contracts had been such an albatross the last decade, and to have flexibility going into a time of CBA uncertainty is wonderful.  I don’t love Amar’e as our number one man, but it was probably a move that had to be made.  I did love the David Lee trade, though, especially since Lee could have left for nothing and he had already been alienated.  I’m looking forward to how the rest of the free agency season plays out, but I’m excited for next season (even though I probably still won’t get to see any Knicks games on TV since Lebron signed in Miami).

• I think Lebron is sending out smoke signals to put the pressure on NY, but that he will ultimately sign there.  NY lets him pick his own team, play with a coach he is familiar with, and improve the team further next year.  The 2011 aspect could be the difference-maker, and it is something that many of the other suitors lack.
• I don’t think Lebron would be willing to go to Miami, because Wade is top-dog there and their arena is pitifully attended considering they won a championship and Wade plays there.  However, I think Bosh likely goes to Miami for the weather and relaxed atmosphere.
• I think the Chicago thing is baloney, because Rose, Noah, and Lebron form a team with no outside shooting.  It’d be harder for Lebron to leave Cleveland but stay in the Midwest, and the ownership in Chicago is not always the most generous.  I’m not saying it can’t happen, but I don’t think their situation is nearly as attractive as analysts suddenly think.
• I am alright with Joe Johnson signing with NY for 3-4 years and less than max money, although I get the feeling he’ll go to a sub-optimal situation for more dollars.  I would hate to have Johnson and Amar’e in an older version of the 2005 Phoenix Suns with no point guard.  I don’t really want to see Amar’e on this team at all, as he seems to be a pouty prima donna who does not rebound or defend (especially since you could keep David Lee for less and at least get rebounds).
• I am ok with NY just getting one good free agent at the right price and rolling the dice again in 2011.  Why ruin all this hard-earned salary cap flexibility just because some fans are short-sighted?  We watched through the Isiah Thomas years; we will keep watching.
• I do think you generally need two super-stars to win, but I think Lebron could win without a dominant big man.  I even think Lebron and David Lee could be a good enough duo if NY could get/develop a big man to defend and do the dirty work and if there was a capable point guard (with steady defense and 3-point range) to take some of the load off Lebron.

Along with some of the boxes for our move to a temporary condo (for a few months), this new ability has made our current condo seem extremely small.  Kiwi can now easily cover the entire span of our condo in very little time, and he is so strong that when I try to stop him he just stiff-arms me and breaks the tackle.