Category: Gear

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 2, 20269:52 pm

Absolutely Authentic Audio

Every year before Easter, I listen to the original Jesus Christ Superstar recording from October 1970. My parents gave me the double album for Christmas 1971 and regretted it. Mom begged me to stop playing the rock opera over and over again. I obstinately continued. (She preferred Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn, and other well-known Country Music artists of the time.)

JCS is the background music for this post, but in different fashion than more recent years. Rather than listen to the digital download, I dug out the two-set CD that I purchased decades ago. Physical media is all the rage, suddenly, and we still have all the accumulated discs—thankfully.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 9, 202610:17 pm

I skewer Samsung’s Smartphone Flagship

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra arrived this morning, about two days ahead of official availability. Already, a few design decisions rile me, and they could possibly be dealbreakers. Hopefully, they won’t be.

In my September 2014 analysis “In Good Design, Balance of Benefits is Everything“, I explain the importance of features, and the benefits they deliver, working well together without detracting from one another nor diminishing a device’s most fundamentally essential functions. If, for example, the new thingy takes away battery longevity—and that’s a customer priority—the digital device is unbalanced.

Photo by Joe WilcoxFeb 23, 20269:21 pm

Power Up!

As part of our preparedness for manmade or natural disasters, we keep three different battery backups: Bluetti AC50, EcoFlow River 2 Max, and Jackery Explorer 300. At least one recent wide-area San Diego power outage had us put all three into service. They performed admirably, providing power for numerous devices for the length of the blackout.

On Feb. 20, 2025, we received notice from the rental management company on behalf of San Diego Gas and Electric that our electricity would be off today from about 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Reason: Uprade the apartment complex to smart meters. Oh joy. At our previous apartment, the utility bill doubled after similar switchover. But that’s topic of a future post, if necessary.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 25, 20259:55 pm

Time for Change

A year ago, I groaned when opening Galaxy Watch Ultra and seeing how big (and ugly) it was. I kept it for the larger screen and better battery life. Did I miss the Watch6 Classic! I got good value from the distinguishing, unique feature: Control bezel around the circumference. It’s back with Watch8 Classic. Thank you, Samsung!

Eh, slight problem: The company didn’t offer a trade-in option—Ultra for Classic. Damn. But Samsung would give, among other devices, $100 for any smartphone in any condition. One of my sisters had a functional Garmin she didn’t need and was willing to send it off for me. I should be able sell the Ultra for enough to make a good chunk of the remaining cost.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 6, 20258:46 pm

For Home Movies?

Before ever using a Leica, or understanding the brand’s value to collectors and photographers, I discovered several vintage film cameras for sale in an Ocean Beach, Calif. antique mall. None sold for more than $100; I possibly passed up an unexpectedly good opportunity.

That was November 2010. Fastforward to Nov. 10, 2024, when I walked by more vintage gear—this time for projecting videos and more, outside a camera store along Adams Avenue in the grey zone where a sliver of North Park separates Normal Heights and University Heights.

Photo by Joe WilcoxFeb 7, 202510:21 pm

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: Oh, Yeah

I am nowhere ready to officially review the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, even though my preorder arrived on Jan. 30, 2025—way early. The smartphone started selling in stores and online today. If you are considering moving from, say, either the S23 Ultra or S24 Ultra, don’t delay. The new model is surprisingly affordable, for a limited time.

Samsung typically offers magnanimously generous launch deals, particularly the value given for trade-in of older devices. To my surprise, Samsung hasn’t yet replaced the fantastic opportunity presented during the preorder period. Free storage upgrade is still available, and your S23 Ultra or S24 Ultra is worth $750 or $900, respectively, against purchase of the newer smartphone.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 30, 20258:17 pm

Samsung Galaxy S25 and S25 Ultra Arrive Way Early

The new Samsung smartphones ship, officially, on Feb. 7, 2025, so I was quite surprised to receive email that ours would arrive today. They did—the S25 for my wife and the Ultra for me.

The company makes yearly upgrades too easy, with launch trade-in and other offers. My S25 Ultra is the 1TB model, for which Samsung shaved $1,140 off the price, bringing the total to less than what I paid for the same capacity S24 a year ago. The same goes for the S25: Less than the S24, with $550 discounted. Annie has the model with 256GB storage, which is the maximum available.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 9, 202511:51 pm

Meet Samsung Galaxy S10 Ultra

This afternoon, I dropped off Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra at FedEx for its trade-in return. Samsung offered a deal I couldn’t resist—and I nearly did let it pass. During the days leading up to Christmas, I twice ordered—and cancelled—the flagship tablet, finally committing on Dec. 27, 2024. The thing arrived on Jan. 3, 2025.

I waffled because the S10 Ultra is an iterative upgrade that also abandons Qualcomm chips for MediaTek’s—and I was apprehensive about the switch. But Samsung maintained a relentlessly persistent promotion: trade-in that was $200 more than what I paid for the S9 Ulta (after another trade-in) for total $1,000 discount that brought the purchase price down to a few hundred dollars—for a top-tier tablet that few others can match, including those from Apple.

Photo by Joe WilcoxAug 31, 20249:05 pm

Oh, You Nag!

I am not someone who often feels, or actually is, sick. Aging—and San Diego’s unhealthy air (and overall) environment—means I don’t feel as consistently good as in the past. But my overall constitution and immunity are robust enough—usually.

That’s my explanation for four-day lapse posting. Something got me this week, and it wasn’t terribly debilitating either. Symptoms started strangely: Sharp pains over my left eye, which sunlight exacerbated. That passed by Day 2, when body aches and general exhaustion manifested. I also developed a low-grade fever (37.7 Celsius; 99.9 Fahrenheit)—my first since December 2017. Honestly.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 25, 20247:14 pm

It’s Huge! Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra!

So-o-o, Samsung offered irresistible incentives that compelled me to preorder Galaxy Watch Ultra as a belated 65th birthday present. Among them: $350 trade-in credit for Watch6 Classic, which is considerably more than I paid in December 2023. Also: Free dark grey Trail Band. What’s not to like?

I can answer: Size. The 47mm watch is ginormous, and the band is eye-scorching fluorescent orange rather than the more subdued mango as appears on the manufacturer’s website and in every reviewer YouTube video that I watched before the thing shipped; strangely, my photos, too. The wristwear arrived late yesterday morning, and my out-of-box reaction was trepidation rather than excitement, opening hours later.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMay 17, 20249:21 pm

I am a Pixel Owner, Once More

May 8, 2024. In my news feed, several tech blogs spotlighted Google Store’s sudden, shocking trade-in offer for Pixel Tablet: Up to $399—equivalent to the price of the 128GB variant—in exchange for one of many, many iPad models. Free plus sales tax is a rather compelling offer.

The device launched a year earlier, making so little positive impression that I ordered two Samsung Galaxy tabs—one for my wife and another for me. Pixel Tablet looks even more inferior than 12 months ago, coming right as Apple released new iPads packing M4 chips. But they do cost mountains of cash more. Got an organ to sell? Kidneys fetch a good return, I hear.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 27, 202410:42 pm

Yikes! Two Galaxy S24 Series Smartphones are in the House

Yesterday, UPS delivered the Galaxy S24 and S24 Ultra, which I preordered from Samsung on Jan. 17, 2024. My wife and I each chose one of the three exclusive colors; she moves up from the S22 and I from S23 Ultra. The South Korean manufacturing conglomerate offered generous $450 trade-in value for her phone and $750 for mine. Combined with other discounts and incentives, which includes double storage, my out-of-pocket spend for the new model is less than the older one. For hers, I paid less than the discount given for the trade-in.

Last night, right before going to bed, I finally opened the box for a peak and a shock. Titanium Green wasn’t as strong a color as I expected. Oddly, the Featured Image and companion—even taken with Leica Q2—isn’t representative. The green isn’t as faint or pastel as you see but not really far from it.