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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.

Haunted by the AT&T Ringtone

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Imaging hearing this audio sound again and again but very faintly. Eventually, it’ll drive you crazy.

[audio:https://www.pulpconnection.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Attringtone.mp3]

That’s what haunted me as my LG G3 Android phone was stuck playing this tune. The screen wasn’t responsive, the phone was getting hot, but I would hear that AT&T ringtone every few minutes indicating some function. Not knowing what was going on, I now understand why I had to initially install the battery – so I knew how to remove the battery for situations like this.

lg-g3-back

I removed the massive battery and let the phone sit for a few seconds. After reinstalling the battery and powering up, the phone behaved as normal though the full charge was now at 76%. I think there are few things I need to learn about the LG G3.

Comparing Pics

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Like many others, my smartphone has become my most used camera. The quality of the images is more than good enough, forget about zooming, and speed matters (speed of getting the camera ready and the speed of snapping pics). So let’s make some unscientific comparisons between the images from an iPhone 5 and the LG G3. While taking the pics, I pretty much stayed in the same location but did move the phone closer or further to better frame each shot.

Scroll over each image to see the source.

What’s obvious right away is the huge size of the G3’s 5.5-in screen while taking pictures. As a view finder, the large screen is easy on the eyes, but then again a tablet as a view finder is also easy on the eyes but goofy and clumsy looking. And taking a pictures with the LG is by no means inconspicuous. It’s too hard to hide the large form factor to take discreet, subtle pictures. You really can’t hide when taking pictures with the LG G3.

In general, the images from the G3 are sharper and has more detail in low light areas. The G3 uses lasers for its autofocus and yeah, I guess them lasers do work! Though I still think the focusing system of the G3 lags behind the iPhone 5. And hey, the iPhone 5 is two years old, so I hope modern technology surpasses that from 2012. But if I got the time, I wouldn’t mind using the G3 to snap some excellent pics.

lights

My quick assessment – quality of images goes to the LG G3, but overall speed of use goes to the iPhone 5.

LG G3 Unboxing

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Definitely not the same vibe as the unboxing of an Apple device, but the LG G3 was efficiently packed in a fitted box.

A few things though. After opening the box, you pick up the phone and marvel at its lightness. Only after fully emptying the contents of the box do you realize the (heavy and huge) battery is not installed. Also, there’s no mention of having to install the battery or a guide how to install the battery. It was easy enough to do, but I would have thought the Quick Start guide would say something about the battery. Anyways, once the battery is installed the L3 isn’t featherweight anymore.

Check out the clunky charger. After seeing it, you start to really appreciate Apple’s designs and attention to details, even with its accessories.

Taking Screen Shots in Android

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One of my first lessons of living the Android Life was figuring out how to take a screen shot. Sounds easy enough, but this became my first exposure to the differences between Apple and Android phone makers.

For all iOS devices, holding down the physical power and home buttons trigger a screen shot. For Android, taking a screen shot depends. Yes, it depends on your version of Android and the hardware of your phone. In general, the key combo for an Android screen shot is the power button and volume down held down for a bit, but again, it depends.

Then the screen shot isn’t necessarily saved to the standard “camera roll” as with iOS. The screen shot is copied to the internal clipboard and needs to be “pasted” somewhere. Android will prompt you to choose which app to store the captured screen shot, Google+ Pictures, the phone’s Gallery app, or others.

When emailing a screen shot (or any image for that fact), Apple Mail typically asks the user to resize the image before sending. Android though wants to send the full resolution, multi-megabyte image file. You’d need a third party app to resize the image on Android before emailing.

Shopping for a Washing Machine Again

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And here we go again. Almost four years ago to the day, we purchased a washing machine, the LG WM2487HWMA front loader. Sadly, this washer won’t make it much longer.

It’s progressively been making louder and louder noises while in operation so we had a tech inspect it. The Direct Drive motor is fine, and the drum is fine, and these are the two parts with long term warranties. It’s the parts that hold the drum and motor together that’s busted. Estimate for the repair came out to roughly $800!!

So buying a new washing machine is a better answer. Disappointed at the longevity of this LG, we looked at Consumer Reports for other options. However, LG and Samsung still lead the way in CR reviews along with the least amount of repair issues. Hmmmm. We started looking at Samsung washers only to discover that these washers are deep. They are all 27 inches wide, but between 32-34 inches deep. The typical LG 4.0 cu ft washer is right under 30 inches deep. Because of its current (immovable) location, an extra four inches wouldn’t work out. Seems like LG has the market on “small” 27-in washing machines. Other brands (GE, Maytag, Whirlpool) we looked at were all 30 inches or more. Oh, and this is for front loaders with at least 4.0 cu ft of interior space.

The new LG behemoth, the WM8000HVA, with 5.1 cu ft of space was intriguing. It’s still deeper at 32 3/10 inches compared to 29 3/4 inches, and also it’s 29 inches wide compared to the standard 27 inches. We could actually accommodate the extra two inches of width, but those few inches of depth are still a problem so we couldn’t match our other behemoth LG appliance.

So where does this leave us? Here’s a rundown of what we wanted:

  • Low maintenance
  • Extended warranty
  • 4.0 cu ft or more of interior space
  • Front loader. Every sales rep and tech still recommended front loaders for cleaner clothes.
  • Similar depth of current washer
  • No extra fancy wash cycles (but they all pretty much have them like it or not)
  • Available NOW. Our current washer just ain’t going to make it so we can’t wait 30-60 days for delivery.
LG-WM4070HWA
LG WM4070

After checking out Sears, Costco, Lowes, and Home Depot, we ended up at Pacific Sales inside of Best Buy. Not finding a Samsung that met our requirements, we went with another LG, the WM4070HWA, with its 4.3 cu ft of space. It’s the same footprint of our current LG, and there is was one in stock. It seems this model is relatively new with very few reviews available unlike the popular LG WM3470. So although Pacific Sales did not have a floor model to see (neither did other stores), we bought the LG WM4070HWAD with delivery this week.

We also purchased the extended warranty due to our bad luck with our former LG washer. At $129 for 5 years (I have to check on that), it’s a reasonable addition.

Let’s hope for better luck with this LG.