Due to the tremendous demand for both Power Support’s “anti-glare / matte film” and Contour Design’s iSee 3G Clear Hardcase, it took two weeks until I was finally able to pick up a set.  So, I headed down to the Apple Store tonight at one of San Diego’s finest shopping malls, Fashion Valley: A Simon Mall and with luck, I quickly snatched up both products.

It was going to be a quick return of the Agent 18, and after much consideration and one letter to Contour asking when the next iteration of their Showcase for the iPhone 3G would come out, I knew that I needed to settle with something that could offer me protection right away.  The glossy screen protector that came packaged with other case solutions offered a clear plastic static cling piece but it’s major flaw was that it attracted too many fingerprints and my oily face didn’t help the problem.  I was plagued, since day one, with a screen that I had to perpetually wipe off every time I put the phone to my ear or played games further oil smudges with my fingerprints.

Both screen protectors offer the benefit of covering the entire face of the iPhone 3G with the exception of the Home button, that are made of a static cling plastic that adheres with ease, stays put and offers an easy, no sticky residue allowing you to remove, cleanr and reapplt at your leisure.  The biggest difference between the two can be easily compared to having a glossy LCD screen vs. a matte LCD screen. (e.g. shipped on the original Apple Powerbook LCD)

You can clearly see that the screen on the left with the protector that came prepackaged with a previous case wasn’t doing so much in the department of cleanliness.  This is not a direct comparison with Power Support’s Crystal film set but it still is indicative of what you will get in terms of overall result.  Over the to the right, you have the Power Support anti-glare film that was newly applied and fondled with finger streaks and face rubs.  Without a doubt, I truly believe that the anti-glare / matte screen protector is the way to go.  It helps the screen in every way possible deflecting scratches, fingerprints, and glare.  I was using the previous protector for 2 weeks now, and I’m more than happy with what I got with Power Support’s product.  It is ridiculous though that 2 pieces of film cost $14.95.  It seems as if everything for these Apple products are being priced way too high!  rating: 9/10

The iSee is self explanatory.  The installation is easy and the clear plastic is beautiful.  I applied the iSee case with no problem but the biggest gripe that I have are that the two soft keys (not pictured) that come packaged and are used to protect the hold key and volume buttons.  Simple put, they are just too hard to press and are frustrating!  I rather almost not have them on at all.  I still love the fit and like the fact that it protects the metal edge of the iPhone 3G well.  Coupled with the anti-glare screen from Power Support, you have one heck of a solution for protection.

For another $10, a holster and clip are made available for the iSee, but if you wait for Contour Design’s Showcase, it comes all prepackaged including a shock absorbing rubber that borders the inside of the clear protective case.  Looks like I’ll be doing a more extensive review of that case at a later date, but for now, I recommend the iSee.  rating: 8/10

update - of course, when I finally settle for a solution, Contour Design’s website shows that the Showcase for the iPhone 3G is set to ship out on the 15th of August.  You can send one over to my address any time and I’ll do a review.  Thanks guys!

My new updated schedule for the month of August is up and over to the right –>

I’ve been twittering a lot lately with the Twinkle by Tapulous application and have found it to be quite fun.  It shows you who is nearby as well as the people that you follow on twitter.  The program is just a tad buggy as it ends up resetting my device once a day or so, but either than that and some other random programs, I’m on it the most.  Riding the bus to an from the parking lot is quite boring and this keeps me occupied. 

It’s about 25 minutes till my birthday and I think I’ll call it a night.  I had a great weekend which included a little birthday gathering at the house with some of my friends friends and I’m off again for another 4 day trip followed by a quick trip to San Diego (<36 hours) then by a nap then a 4 day trip.  Check it out on my August Schedule. 

***Update*** as always, because of the awesomeness that ASA lets up swap around our trips and schedules with an open time pot, I was able to trade my nap this weekend for something else a lot later in the month.  Looks like I’ll be in San Diego for most of the upcoming weekend.  Check out the updated schedule.  See you on the beach!

Well, here I am again trying out, not only a new service, but a new device that my friends and I are planning to develop for. So far, in the last 72 hours, I have crashed the new phone multiple times thus not allowing me to accurately time the battery life using the built-in “usage” calculator. It’s frustrating alright and sometimes the phone is just a little too slow. One gripe with using the contact sync feature with Apple’s buggy-shoulda-been-beta mobileMe software package is the 5 seconds that I have to wait while trying to pull up one of my buddies. I can’t say that I’m sold on it the “Exchange for everyone else” and will probably cancel it after the free 60 day trial. It’s nice to have a calendar and photo library sync up but I can’t justify the $100/yr just yet.

I’m flying again quite a bit and with the initial award for August, it looks like I’ll be able to keep up the commute or head out for another out of country adventure. I need I save some money up for the holiday season but who am I kidding anyways? Life is on another upswing and as long as I can keep up the positivity, it’ll be smooth sailing.

I’m going to be Twitter-ing more often and even uploading some mobile photos that can be found on my facebook profile. Facebook released a handy little native app so depending on whether I keep it up will determine the continuation of trelijah. The name is probably going to change again…introducing eliPhone…maybe.

I sent out my dilapidated Aliph Jawbone Bluetooth Headset last Saturday from a San Diego post office with hopes for a quick return.  To date, it has been about one year since the original purchase from their online store and I reviewed it as less than stellar.  Almost immediately following my 3rd or 4th inquiry to Jawbone, I received an RMA and took care of it. 

By the time I came back to Atlanta from my four day trip, I had a UPS package from Aliph with a brand new headset!  I’m not sure how many different revisions there have been in software or chipset, but this headset is blowing away my previous experience.  I’m really happy with the performance as well as the distance of the headset.  Maybe it’s also because I have the Treo 755p instead of the Treo 650, but nonetheless, it’s nice to be hands-free again. 

Aliph kept their promise in expediting a replacement and I cannot be more thankful.  As we all know there are more states that are following suit regarding cell phone usage while driving (California Law regarding this issue comes into effect July 1st, 2008) and I’m going to be compliant.  Cheers to Aliph. 

Further enhancing their Internet communication presence, Skype released a beta version of their mobile “thin” client targeted toward Java-enabled devices.  Skype Mobile is available for download on varying handsets from Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson with more to follow in the coming months.  There are two ways to install the client: over the air directly to your phone or download to your computer subsequently transferring it to your device.  Further instructions are available at www.skype.com/go/mobiledownload. 

If your phone is part of the other manufactures column, then check out iSkoot.  Their FREE mobile software delivers all that Skype has to offer on your mobile handset.  I’ve been using it for sometime now and I have to admit that it does have some quirks, but if you need to have Skype now, then this is the right software for you. 

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Due to the overwhelming flood of requests, I have posted a direct download for the Java Virtual Machine PRC file on my webserver.  Now you will be able to download the install file directly to your mobile Palm device enabling instant satisfaction.  You’ll also be able to enjoy a more complete mobile HTML browsing experience with Opera Mini. 

J9JavaVMMidp20.prc

I’ve been using Opera Mini 4.1 beta for a little while now and all the little upgrades that they did over 4.0 are definitely worth the trial.  Get it now at www.operamini.com/beta

Below is an excerpt directly from their website.  Happy Mobile Browsing!

New in Opera Mini 4.1 beta

Now even faster

Prior to this release, we upgraded our servers and Opera Mini now receives your requested Web pages up to 50% faster. So you can now access sites like Facebook, BBC, and any of your other favorite Web sites even faster, with Desktop-like speeds.

Find things faster

Even though scrolling to your Web content is already easy with Opera Mini, the new Opera Mini 4.1 beta lets you search for text within a Web page so you can get to the information you need even quicker than before.

Get to your Web sites faster

Now you can stop wasting time typing in full Web addresses more than once while browsing. When typing Web addresses, Opera Mini 4.1 beta will recognize and suggest completions for you based on your Bookmarks and browsing history, making address input faster, easier and much more intuitive.

Well, here it is. I’m not just finally able to accomplish my walk arounds, but I’m equipped with one of the best flashlights I have ever used. I leveled up a notch but definitely haven’t maxed out. For a low price, and I say low only because it is one of the cheapest that Surefire has to offer (A2 Aviator sells for $195.00), it’s truly the best out there. The Surefire G2 sells for $65.00 and it is worth every penny as long as I can keep on my person and not misplace it.

I had a Mag-lite mini that I modded with a Luxeon LED which was great but that was taken from me in the beginning of my career here at ASA and never returned. I replaced it shortly with a what I thought would be a good flashlight, the Coast 3-LED, but that was a big let down. Not much to say there, but I’ll give the G2 my personal recommendation until I test out the G3 or the A2. This flashlight is almost overkill really, but it’s just nice to carry a light saber in the cold dark mornings.

More pictures after the jump alongside the Coast 3-LED Flashlight with night and day pictures.

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