2012′s Required Reading/Watching.

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Rob Blatt

At some point recently I realized that I haven’t read/watched books/movies I should have by the time I turned 30. I’ve begun to rectify that, and I’m hoping to get it all accomplished in 2012.

Rob Blatt’s incomplete list of required reading/listening/watching

  • Ian Fleming’s 13 James Bond novels
  • The films of Stanley Kubrick
  • Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings novels
  • The Godfather movies (even the third)
  • The Star Wars Prequels

I got a Kindle Fire as a gift, and I am almost halfway through the James Bond novels (5/13 read).

With the James Bond novels, it’s easy to know what order to read them in. The books are chronological. What about the Kubrick movies? Do I watch them in the order of release? Do I start with the films on the AFI 100 list?

I feel the need to defend me listing the Star Wars Prequels along the other items on the list. I’m Star Wars obsessed overall, and I’ve seen the original trilogy well over 100 times, but I haven’t seen The Phantom Menace or Attack of the Clones since I saw them on release day in the theater and I’ve never seen Revenge of the Sith. I don’t expect to enjoy them, but I’m interested in being completest.

The same goes for the third Godfather film. I’m aware that it’s not good, but I would rather know for myself instead of taking everyone’s word for it.

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2012: Rob Blatt’s Year of World Record Eating

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Rob Blatt

I’m no stranger to world record eating. With two records under my belt, I’m hungry for more. For that reason, I’m ready to make this declaration.

2012 will be my year of world record eating.

A minimum of once a month, I will set or break a new world record that involves eating. I’ll announce my attempts on my blog, and you can follow my official progress with my profile on Recordsetter. Recordsetter is the site that Amber set a world record for Most Homemade Pies Donated to a Mission (we’re waiting for verification of her breaking of the record this year). They also included Amber in their recent book.

The first record I will attempt to set is:
The fastest eating of two full cans of ravioli

  • Both cans will start unopened
  • Picnic rules apply (utensils must be used)
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The Kindle Fire, Sideloading and Google’s Philosophies.

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Rob Blatt

Sometimes it’s a pain being a Kindle Fire user.

Google released Currents for iOS and Android devices last week. It made a big splash with plenty of coverage around the web praising and hating Google’s latest release. Too bad that the Kindle Fire isn’t considered an Android device when it comes to Google.

Google doesn’t make their apps available for download through the Amazon Appstore. Google makes 14 (14!) apps for the iPhone, a competing platform, but nothing for the Kindle Fire. The Kindle Fire uses the same base code as any other Android application. Little has to be done to get an Android app that isn’t in the Amazon Appstore. Most work out of the gate.

What’s Google’s hangup with releasing Kindle Fire apps? No doubt they don’t like Amazon’s control over the platform. There has been plenty of criticism about Amazon’s handling of the Amazon Appstore. Google may not want to get involved, but they are turning their backs on millions of users. I’m going to guess that the Kindle Fire will outsell all other Android tablets combined (exception: nook Color + Tablet).

There are alternative sources for apps for the Kindle Fire out there, but they lack the ease of use of the Amazon Appstore. If you want to install Google Currents, The Unofficial Kindle Fire blog has a quick 22 step process to get it working on the Kindle Fire. Here’s a seven minute video explaining how to get regular Android Marketplace apps on your Kindle Fire. By the way, both of those methods break Amazon’s video capabilities.

I once read (can’t find the source) that Google created iOS apps because it was important to spread their platform as wide as possible. If that’s the case, don’t you think we should start seeing some Kindle Fire apps soon?

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My Short Experience with the 2012 Chevy Sonic

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Rob Blatt

I test drove the new Chevy Sonic at NYComicCon 2011. Chevy gave us some breakfast and put us through a short presentation about how the car was all new, is being marketed as a car for millennials and talked about the engine and frame a bit. I understood some of it and headed for the car.

The Sonic seemed fast on the road. While we didn’t get to take it out for a high speed drive, we took it around most of Manhattan via the West Side Highway and FDR Drive. I wanted to go faster, but laws and traffic wouldn’t allow. From the driver’s side of things, the new dashboard is simple at a glance and there are plenty of places to put your things (see a pic of the center console here). If you want to hook your phone directly into the stereo, there’s a little compartment above the glovebox for that too. You can control most of an iPhone’s music capabilities from the dash, which is why it’s put away. On the Equinox I drove down to SXSW this year, there was a phone hookup in a center storage unit for the same idea.

It’s a cool looking car, and is Chevy’s response to the Ford Fiesta. It’s for the same crowd and I assume we’ll see more and more and more from Chevy about this car.

PLUS!

the threw it out a plane:

and threw it off a 100-foot platform:

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A Quick Thought About The Kindle Fire’s $199 Price

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Rob Blatt

Is it possible that Amazon is pricing the Kindle Fire at a loss because they are anticipating lower production costs in the future?

Right now, estimates put Amazon’s loses at around $10 per Kindle Fire. I’m sure with time, production costs can be lowered by $10 or more. Look at the prices of Kindles or iPods for the last few years and you’ll see the trend. The more that are manufactured, the lowered the cost because parts become cheaper as millions upon millions are ordered or a new manufacturing technique is created.

Perhaps Amazon is willing to lose a little money with each Kindle Fire sold to, with time, settle into a place where they are making money with each Kindle Fire sold.

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