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Stay Away

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My caution to you is to stay away from Starbuck’s new Salted Caramel Mocha bottled drink. Found at grocery stores, this limited edition drink sounds wonderful but falls short on the promise. Not caramel-y enough, not mocha-y enough, and (thankfully) not salty enough, this drink isn’t worth its cost of +$3.

starbucks-salted-caramel-mocha-bottled

Faith Lost

Looks like this “faithful niner” has lost his faith. Beaten down and broken down, this abandoned truck has been collecting parking tickets for sometime. It’s missing one window, the car battery is under the vehicle, and it’s sitting on three wheels. Yeah, I’d say faith has been lost.

faith-lost

Dolby Atmos and Netflix

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Regards Dolby Atmos content, Netflix does have a few titles available for streaming. But there are other requirements for Atmos and Netflix.

  • You need Atmos compatible audio gear.
  • You need the appropriate Netflix streaming plan “4 Screens + Ultra HD.” This is the top tier streaming plan Netflix offers.
  • A fast Internet connection to stream the additional Atmos data
  • Only certain devices support Atmos on Netflix. These are:
  1. Xbox One
  2. Xbox One S
  3. 2017 LG OLED televisions

Hmmm, I don’t think I have all of these…

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Liking the Yonex Voltric 5FX

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Looking to upgrade an all around badminton racquet, I picked up the new Yonex Voltric 5FX. Under $100 at Amazon, this racquet is head heavy (as is the Voltric line), but the overall weight is light. I’ve used the 5FX a few times, and I can tell there’s more snap and pop in my swing. But I now have to adjust the feel of my drop shot since it’s gotten slower and doesn’t dive like before. But other than that adjustment, playing with the 5FX has been more fun.

What really may be the difference is the grip size. I went down to a G5 from a G3. While the G5 grip size does feel too small, there’s increased handling and control compared to the G3 which is probably even bigger with a new grip and overgrip.

I’m not completely won over by the dominantly white racquet. It ain’t bad, but I have a feeling the white will lose its “freshness” after wear and tear. But for now, this racquet is definitely a step up.

Comings and Goings at Ala Moana

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While at Ala Moana today, I saw some changes happening. There’s a new coffee place, Island Brew, where Gloria Jeans was. Not so sure about this choice since um, Gloria Jeans went out of business seemingly not too long after opening.

While we wish Island Brew good luck, we also need to say farewell to ivivva. Specializing in activewear for girls, the brand is moving to the cloud, closing down its retail locations and focusing on online sales. ivivva Ala Moana closes its doors on August 20, 2017.

One thing that hasn’t changed and is comforting in an odd kind of way is this all-too-familiar scene. It’s for “preventative maintenance.”

Must Eat at Ramen Bario

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$7 for parking in the Waikiki Shopping Plaza. I don’t care. Cash only. I don’t care. All the other eateries in Waikiki Yokocho. I don’t care (well not yet anyways). Our server mixed up one of our dishes. I don’t care. Kinda pricey. I don’t care.

All I care about is that ramen broth, specifically that of the tsukemen ramen from Ramen Bario. OH MY GOODNESS. I initially sampled the broth to check its spiciness, and a few spoonfuls later, I had almost forgotten about the noodles themselves. That broth is so rich and so different that I thought it was perfect. But then I added a spoonful of fresh garlic, and the flavor went up another level. Then I added a spoonful of the chili pepper, and the flavor of the broth just exploded. My, oh my.

Go check out the interesting decor and all the eateries at Waikiki Yokocho, but be sure to visit Ramen Bario first.

Walmart and Nintendo Both Suck

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Of course. Of course, it was too good to be true. I happened to be at the ready when Walmart announced its pre-order of the Nintendo SNES Classic Edition, and I managed to get my pre-order processed.

But today, I got notified (and so did everyone else) that this SNES pre-order was a technical glitch and therefore all pre-orders from Walmart have been cancelled. The email reads:

Unfortunately, due to a technical glitch, the Super Nintendo Classic Edition was mistakenly made available last Friday evening ahead of the official release date. We, regrettably, will have to cancel this item on your order. We know that this is incredibly disappointing to you, and we’re truly sorry for this mistake.

Another email reiterated the cancellation:

Thanks for your recent order. We’re really sorry, but the items shown below were canceled due to a system error that kept us from processing orders. We’re working to fix the error and hope to have a solution soon.

All I can simply say is that Walmart you suck. You too Nintendo since it seems like you’re forcing Walmart to cancel the (successful) pre-orders. Terrible, terrible customer service.

Researching OLED Television

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No upgrade is imminent, but curiosity calls…

Current OLEDs from Sony and LG all use the same panel made by LG. That panel is the same panel used in all models (at least in the LG lineup of B, C, G, E, and W). So the most basic and the most decked out LG OLED display are essentially the same picture. The hardware surrounding the screen is the main differentiator.

Focusing on the LG lineup. The B-line the cheapest LG series but is not widely available. Costco sells it and Target has the older model.

Two sizes are available at 55-in and 65-in, but I’m looking at the 55-in model.

The B6 is a good deal since the B7 has marginal improvements that may not justify the higher cost. Costco only has the B7. Here’s a B6 review.

The B7 loses the component inputs the B6 has. But the B6 component input is “shared” with the composite input (not sure what shared means).

The B7 has better support for gaming, able to keep up without lag. The B7 has WebOS 3.5, while the B6 has verion 3.0.

Dolby Atmos on the B7 is currently a waste of time since the Atmos sound can only come from the dinky television speakers, not through external speakers.

Active HDR. I don’t know what that is but the B7 has it. The B6 does not according to LG’s specs.

LOL. The B7 has 802.11ac wireless and the B6 has “802.11 a/c.” Same difference.

Here’s the LG-OLED-B6-B7-comparison.

TL;DR. The B6 looks like a deal right around $2000. But the $2150 B7 has some useful improvements, and if bought at Costco with the Costco credit cards, it includes two more years of warranty.

Pre-Ordered a Nintendo SNES Classic Edition

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Fingers crossed. It looks like I successfully pre-ordered a Nintendo SNES Classic Edition. When Nintendo announced this minature retro gaming console, pre-order links at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy soon followed. I had signed up for inventory notifications at these sites, and I got an alert yesterday afternoon from Walmart.

walmart-snes-inventory

Following the link, I quickly completed my order not believing it would actually process based on my previous experiences trying to online order the Nintendo Classic Edition. Luckily, my order appeared to go through followed by email confirmation of my order.

But… you just never know especially since this release came out of nowhere. The Twitterverse mentioned possible cancellations as a mistake on Walmart’s part and reported technical issues on Walmart’s site before selling out.

This morning, I thought it was too good to be true when I saw another email from Walmart. Here comes the “Ooops, my bad, we made a mistake” message I thought, but surprise, surprise instead Walmart was informing me that the release date of the SNES Classic Edition moved up a day from the original date.

But I’m still crossing my fingers until the SNES is in hand, and I’m playing Street Fighter II Turbo, Contra III, F-Zero, Final Fantasy III…

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