Summer, and Android 2.2

Summer is finally here in Rapid City! There were some days of heavy rain ('hydro-bliss', as I termed it), which was rather a pain. I generally love rain, more so, because RC is a dry place- some rain is really a bliss. But, only some; not thunderstorms. Last weekend saw heavy flash-flood warning flashing across all television channels. It also did interrupt the Lakers-Celtics finals game # 5. That was an awesome game. I was rooting for Lakers, but Boston did well to satisfy the home crowd to get a 3-2 lead in the NBA finals. How much I wish I was like Coby, but I am happy the way I am. Anyway, today's game 6 belonged to the LA Lakers- every bit of it. It was a substantial defeat and Coby's men will sleep happily tonight.

Talking of sleeping, I am going to bed early morning these days. I really mean mornings. Last Sunday, I slept at 6, after grabbing a Starbucks Cappuccino. Summers are like this, I guess. Boating, driving, cricket, volleyball- you name it. But, I should be more working on completing my thesis ASAP. I ain't got no time left. July is around the corner, and I have to wrap-up my MS by the end of July. Big task ahead of me!

This summer is also the season of marriages. Some of my old friends are now married, or are getting married. Some of my new friends are also getting married; some, who are even younger than me. I wish them great luck and a very happy married life. I would be making my second visit to the city which never sleeps- Las Vegas, a week from Friday. I am excited! It's my friend's friend's bachelor party. Sounds fun, ain't it? I have to make some plans pretty soon here.

I am now really waiting for the Android 2.2 (code-named Froyo) to release for the Motorola Droid. I want it. Now! The Android 2.2 has some new and exciting features over the previous 2.1 (Eclair). It's fast, it's got support for flash 10.1 (f*** Apple for closing their doors to flash), it's got 5 home screens, it's got a faster browser, it's got support for portable wi-fi hotspot and USB tethering, and many more... This is evident from what 2.1 users, like me, have to say, like this one guy says, "The more I read about 2.2, the more I want it! I suppose the newness of the EVO will have to hold me over until 2.2 shows up for it." 

[Screenshots from Android 2.2 on Google Nexus One. Photo courtesy: www.smarterware.org]

Can't wait until Froyo comes out for the Droid. It should be sometime this summer. Apple released their new iPhone 4, which I think is another excellent device from Apple. It now sports a 5 MP camera with flash, a front-facing camera for video-chatting (Facetime), a much higher resolution 'retina' display (w/ 326 pixels/in), and of course the new iOS 4.0. Sounds really exciting. A new stainless-steel design and glass on front and rear make it more adorable to hold in the hand, I would suppose. Anyway, I love my Droid, and love the open-standard Android OS, giving more flexibility to customize ROM and access root of the OS to flash ROMs.

Well, that's what I think of these new smartphones. I am feeling more impressed by the growth of such smartphone usage, especially, by the recent release of Android-based HTC EVO 4G. I just wish Verizon makes some changes to their data plans, so that such smartphones can be more affordable. Cheers to summer, such great devices and software flood the markets. 

I guess I must stop here and go to bed early tonight (it's 'just' 1.04 a.m.) Gotta wrap-up lotsa things this week. I hope you guys too enjoy the summer and cheer for the Lakers as they go to their last game against the Celtics later this week.