Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Question of the day

Posted in:

Illinois

* Remember last year when I was deciding whether or not to leave iOS behind and move to Android Land? I ended up buying a Samsung Galaxy S5. It was a pretty darned good phone.

On Friday, however, a good friend bought a Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. Whoa, man, it was cool. So I picked one up the next day. It feels perfect in my hand, looks great and works like a charm so far.

Highly recommended.

* The Question: Have you made any significant personal tech purchases recently? If so, what did you buy and are you happy with the purchase?

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:33 pm

Comments

Recently switched from a desktop to Apple. It took some getting used to, but is much better and easier to link with my iPhone

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:36 pm
I love my IPhone 6 plus, now that they fixed the camera.

Does a car count as a tech purchase - with all the tech in them these days, seems like they should.

If so, I love my new Outback, too.

Comment by jerry 101 Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:37 pm
MacbooK Pro over Windows machines. Windows 8 is horrible. Mac Much easier to do a lot of things once you learn the keyboard shortcuts.

Comment by He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:40 pm
We bought a Vizio smart TV. It rocks. Awesome picture - and every app was preloaded, so we didn’t even need to download or link up Prime or Netflix.

Comment by Team Sleep Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:44 pm
Windows 9 single-handedly blew me out of MS last year after decades. Apple aficionado now. Hear Windows 10 is much better, but enough was enough. iPhone still my preferred carry-all.

Comment by walker Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:44 pm
Macbook Pro, iPhone 6(personal Phone) and iPhone 6+ (work phone). Apple stuff works together perfectly. Had an android phone a few years ago. Hated it. Was difficult to use over different platforms. Seemed clunky. Would never go back.

Comment by nobody Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:45 pm
Switched over from #2 pencils to ink.

Comment by A guy Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:57 pm
Apple Watch - interestingly I bought it for efficiency (read texts and emails on the fly)and not as a fitness tool and I’m happy so far. I think Apple made a mistake trying to market it as a competitor for FitBit.

Comment by Conn Smythe Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:58 pm
iPad Air 2 and iPhone 6 plus. Like them both.

Comment by Boat captain Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:00 pm
Sonos. A life changer. Really. I listen to waaaay more music now that I can pump it through the house from any device.

Comment by Lobo y Olla Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:02 pm
Ditto Conn Smythe- I bought mine for fitness and ended up returning and buying a Fitbit.

Comment by Come on man! Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:02 pm
Got a wireless printer — nice! Got a set of Callaway Men’s XR irons to replace my 35 year old clunkers. Huge difference.

Comment by OldIllini Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:04 pm
Refurbished my Commodore 64. New paint job.

Comment by 4 percent Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:06 pm
In January I finally got out of the Stone Age and bought a Nokia 520 Windows phone ( very basic - only $30 ). Kept my service with ATT - hated it the first few weeks, but even though it is very basic I find myself texting 90% of the times I probably would have called.

I’m not that much into all the things that some other phones can do but am thinking about upgrading to Windows 10 or another Windows phone ( probably an enhanced Nokia or similar ).

Go with what works for you!!!

I like to keep things simple, and th

Comment by illini Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:07 pm
2001 Saab 9-5 with 45,000 on the engine for $1800.

Comment by lurks Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:07 pm
Bought an 8 track player for my 66 mustang. Santana sounds great.

Comment by Langhorne Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:08 pm
Sorry about the disengagement and confusing, or disjointed comments on my previous post - should have proofread!

Comment by illini Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:11 pm
Wireless soundbar and subwoofer. Nice to eliminate the clutter.

Also I’ve had the Nest Thermostat for 6 months and it has been worth it.

My next tech purchase is going to be the Google OnHub router.

Comment by Chicagonk Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:14 pm
switched back from Iphone to LG G3 phone. I cusom built a new Laptop running Ubuntu Linux - Sweet, blows windows and Mac out of the water, Linux always has.. and more stable and it and all the apps are free…. what a concept, If you don’t Linux, you just don’t know.

Comment by Allen D Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:16 pm
Neato Botvac. It’s an incredible little machine that vacuums floors and carpets

Comment by Biker Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:20 pm
I phone 6 and completely happy.

Comment by Ahoy! Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:20 pm
Finally tossed my DSL for a cable modem. Everybody else in the house is happy. Connection to work was so efficient I didn’t notice the difference.

Comment by a drop in Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:22 pm
Samsung Google Chromebook. Lightning fast, efficient. 1/5th of the price of Apple Macbooks and does everything a regular user needs.

Comment by Mittuns Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:24 pm
Surface Pro 3. Best computer I have ever owned. Touchscreen is fantastic, the form factor is very easy to use, and handwriting notes with the pen feels just like writing on a pad of paper. Truly a great machine. And with Windows 10, it is even better.

Comment by Tasty Grouper Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:27 pm
The 2015 Cubs are way better than the last few versions. So far, I’m very happy with this model.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:29 pm
iPhone 4 back in the day - meh
LG G4 two years ago - phooey
Samsung Galaxy s5 last year - happy happy joy joy.

Comment by Nick Danger Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:31 pm
Sorry, that was me at 3:29. Changed browsers and forgot to bring my cookies back or something.

Comment by 47th Ward Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:32 pm
Updated to the Samsung S6 64gb. Still on a learning curve but Android is just as good as Apple and I like the phone better. Updated from an Iphone S4, so anything would be an upgrade. The Samsung screen is very vivid.

Comment by I Wonder.... Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:41 pm
iphone 6. Love it so far.

Comment by Give Me A Break Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:41 pm
Late December finally bit the bullet and joined Team iPhone 6. I’d had ’smartphones’ but never used the ’smart’ part that much. I love my phone, but I’m also terrified I will drop it (especially in water). I’m eyeing the Samsungs that are less fragile, but have to wait for the contract date to come up.

Comment by Not quite a majority Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:42 pm
Playstation 4. Extremely happy. What a great console to play some games on as well as watch MLB.tv and Amazon Prime.

==- Team Sleep - Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 2:44 pm:==

I picked one up in June, specifically for the preloaded apps.

Comment by Precinct Captain Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:49 pm
I have been instructed by my union not to purchase any expensive items until our contracts are negotiated. Properly.

Comment by Grimm Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 3:54 pm
Bought a Sony 4K TV. 4K programs are sparse but are increasingly available. Awesome picture in 4K

Comment by Pacman Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:09 pm
Upgrading from an iPhone 4S to the iPhone 6. I switched to Apple three years ago and will never switch back.

Comment by Nick Name Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:14 pm
still thrilled w my iphone 6+…

Comment by bored now Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:21 pm
1-watt Motorola bag phone with shoulder bag. Refurbished hand set, heat shield around the battery. Kick-but power and never a dropped call…

Comment by Joe Schmoe Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:22 pm
Surface Pro 3. It took a while to get used to Windows 10 but now I love it. It can even handle complex database queries in Access as fast as my old Dell.

Comment by Gruntled University Employee Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:23 pm
Does going from a 26 year old truck without any fancy electronics to a new Lincoln with so many electronics I’m not even sure what all it does count?

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:35 pm
Nexus 6. Beaut screen and fantastic performance. Superior reception. Speakers are crazy good.

Comment by anonlurker Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:38 pm
Rich,

RE smartphones … my son has me about convinced to move from an old Motorola flip phone to a Galaxy 5 instead of the 6. Don’t remember all the reasons he gave me but some of it had to do with removable items and memory expansion compared to the 6. He seemed to think I would be happier with the 5 in the long run.

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:38 pm
Another vote for the Surface 3. Still use the work desktop, but otherwise I carry it with me everywhere I go. It’s so nice to have a single device that does it all.

Comment by Sam Weinberg Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:43 pm
I’ve never owned a cell phone, but I did upgrade the land line to touch tone sure beats rotary a lot less work

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:49 pm
Upgraded from Samsung Galaxy S5 to S6. Loved the S5 until it crashed on me last month. S6 is great so far.

Comment by Fun with Numbers Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:53 pm
Our household now includes a family member with a phone that has 2Gs of internet access.

Bought a transistor radio at Walgreens a few years ago, but dropped it at a ballgame and need a new one.

Put a new clothesline up this spring after the old dog run was hit by lightning.

Comment by Kasich Walker, Jr. Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:55 pm
No new technology but earlier this summer we got a puppy. Spending more time with the puppy than the smartphone these days and that’s ok with me.

Comment by Jake From Elwood Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 4:56 pm
Have mostly Windows and Android, with the exception of an iPad3. Much prefer the Android platform. Significant recent change was not really a purchase as I qualified for the free upgrade from Windows 8 to Windows 10. Windows 8 was a nightmare. Had a glitch that messed up certain print drivers and the ability to print, require independent patches and lots of angst and extra time trying to fix. All wiped clean with Windows 10. Hopefully that is in the rear-view mirror for good!

Comment by Anon Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 5:02 pm
PS4 here as well, but I’m not a fan of now having to pay to play online.

Comment by mcb Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 5:02 pm
Well, I’ve had a hybrid since 2009, and I am waiting for a city-driving stop-start, full braking adaptive braking system, which, I think, will make city driving much less risky and cause Berkshire-Hathaway and their heavy investment in insurance feel the obsolescence pain…

Comment by PublicServant Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 5:04 pm
iPhone 6. sucks. hate it. too big.

Comment by Jay R Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 5:12 pm
A 64g Sandisk flash drive with wifi. I love it. I have an i-phone and i-pad (so no usb connection or removable storage.) I can stream from it (it is its own wi-fi source) to both devices, and transfer stuff directly from them to a microcard.

Comment by wendy Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 5:33 pm
Bought a Subaru Outback with the eyesight feature.

In a survey I was asked what prompted me to buy the eyesight feature.

Told that “I live in a somewhat rural community and there are lots of tractors and combines on our rural roads. Eyesight keeps me safe when I am looking down, rolling a joint.”

Said they won’t be using my answer to their survey question??

Comment by Sunshine Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:09 pm
Recently bought my third flip phone,
AT&T, $16. Am not addicted to it.
And a Retrospec bike pump, works beautifully.

Delighted Capt. Fax has the latest…!

Comment by Bystander Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:15 pm
I bought the Galaxy s5 back in February. I’m generally happy with it, but it really has way more features than I really need. And I HATE the auto-correct, if you can even call it that. It takes perfectly legitimate words and “corrects” them to total gibberish.

Comment by Curious Georgina Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:41 pm
My daughter convinced me to buy a 3D TV when we finished our basement. We love it. Avatar is a completely different movie in 3D. Glasses are passive so there’s no battery and they are very comfortable. Glad she twisted my arm.

Comment by Finally Out (and very glad to be) Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:42 pm
Well; recent? We’re in the 2000’s now, so recent may be relative. Back in he ’80s, was one of the first on the block with a RadioShack TRS-80. Was a lot of fun, back in the day.

Comment by sal-says Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:43 pm
Oh, yeah. Back in the day, you could get an early version of smart watches. Called a Timex Data link. Would download appts, schedules, alarms, reminders from the PC and put them on the Timex. Hey, technology just gets better, but it all starts somewhere.

Comment by sal-says Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:49 pm
===Timex Data link===

I had one. Super cool in its day.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:58 pm
Shoot Sal, if we’re reminiscing here, I remember paying extra to upgrade to a 340mb hard drive on my PC, and thinking that was more than I’d ever need. But then I thought I’d take a lower current salary in lieu of a pension to ensure I’d never need to be a burden to my children, so I hoping I’m not 0-2.

Comment by PublicServant Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 6:59 pm
I am simply delighted to have a new rear bumper on my 1963 Cadillac! It improved the gas mileage and also increased the head turning ration by at least a third!

Comment by Geneseo Gent Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 7:57 pm
Just got a new am radio tune to 780 and you can hear the magnetic storms

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 8:01 pm
Got a Surface 3 and loving it. Using it as a tablet & laptop with keyboard & stylus.

Comment by John Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 8:18 pm
No personal tech purchases, but for the business finally acquired Firm Central and Time and Billing (both from Westlaw). For small firms, both are excellent products.

Comment by Gooner Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 8:30 pm
I am loving my S6 edge- best phone on the market! I also purchased a 2013 Buick Verano last month and couldn’t be happier .

Comment by Realkewlio Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 8:53 pm
Just got a new abacus..plan on lendin’ to TeamBungle to help with the SF count…but the hidin’ the high divers and $1k purses at the races did not help…wonderin’ if the Ag theme had folks vitin’ with the footsies

Comment by Anonin' Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 9:08 pm
Updated our WAMP/LAMP development environment to use ScriptCase v 8.1 as our primary development framework. Way cool!

Amazing capabilities. Now we’re testing out SymmetricDS Pro for Db replication and online/offline Db data syncing/updating over the internet.

Say Goodbye to manual replication and FTP!!!

Yeah, I know - it’s all geek stuff, but it’s also fewer problems and issues. Goodbye M$.

Comment by Judgment Day Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 9:27 pm
I bought a Garman GPS for my wife, because as we all know men don’t need directions! But, shhh, don’t tell my wife, the GPS is pretty cool!

Comment by G'Kar Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 10:23 pm
Knowing that I’m probably going to be the last person posting here tonight. My significant personal tech purchase as of late was to purchase a lens to place over the camera of my iphone. It makes the image so much better and so much wider. It has come in handy in more ways than one!

Comment by Levois Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 11:08 pm
I’m coveting a sound bar — great sound with minimal addition to our clutter problem. Maybe for Christmas.

Comment by Quizzical Wednesday, Aug 26, 15 @ 11:26 pm
Hubby kept bugging me to replace old TV that was a floor model from Polk Bros. (how long ago did they go out business?) that was working just fine, but when it got to where I could not read the sports scores due to non-HD quality, we bought this year an LG Smart TV. I was skeptical but am happy I did. I love the pre-loaded Netflix, etc. though it took my teenager to figure it out effortlessly.

Comment by 32nd Ward Roscoe Village Thursday, Aug 27, 15 @ 8:10 am
My neighbor’s eight year old boy showed me how to hook up a DVD player and use it with my TV.

Comment by illinoised Thursday, Aug 27, 15 @ 9:06 am
Reading the comments I almost forgot a recent purchase of an Xbox One. The failure of these systems to play Xbox 360 games is sort of annoying. My kids use it mainly for Minecraft.

Comment by Gooner Thursday, Aug 27, 15 @ 9:10 am