Ebisu Drift Circuit - Tokyo Japan

Something to put on my list if I'm really gonna head there. Hope it's not too expensive!

EDIT: Half a day school is approx $690-700...hahaha...er...

Nexus 6P Review

So I've decided to get a Phablet sized Nexus 6P instead of the 5X, hope I'll get use to the size difference!

Google's New Nexus 5X and 6P

I've been meaning to upgrade my phone for awhile now, When Google launched the Nexus 6 last year it was an immediate no for me. The size was too big and I certainly didn't want something with too much heft taking up space in my pockets.

Fast forward 2 years, Google's launched 2 new phones (yay!), a 5 inch replacement as well as a 6 inch model.

The 5X is built by LG while the 6P will be made by Huawei. Frankly I'm not feeling the 6P, it looks odd, but it packs a few better items, specifically a faster chip, dual front facing speakers, and a larger screen (of course).

The 5X follows a same design over the original 5 which I own. It sports a single front facing speaker, and a slightly slower chip, though honestly living with the current Nexus 5 for 2 years now, I'd say all the chips this date can keep up to almost every task, so it's not a huge issue here.

The biggest thing for me is the camera, both the 5X and 6P will sport an all new Sony sensor that has a larger pixel size than its predecessor, making it take in more light.

For comparison:

iPhone 6
Pixel Size 1.5
no OIS (Optical Image Stabilizer)
8 Megapixels
f2.2 Aperture

iPhone 6S
Pixel Size 1.22
no OIS (Optical Image Stabilizer)
12 Megapixels
f2.2 Aperture

iPhone 6S+
Pixel Size 1.22
OIS (Optical Image Stabilizer)
12 Megapixels
f2.2 Aperture

Nexus 5X & 6P
Pixel Size 1.55
no OIS (Optical Image Stabilizer)
12 Megapixels
f2 Aperture

I found it interesting that the 6S has a smaller pixel size over its older model. But specs aside, it's down to the actual test that'll see if the Nexus camera holds up.

The samples look good though.

Lastly, the price, as I'm keen in only the 32gb model instead of the 16gb version, the 5X costs US$429 while the 6P sells for US$499 without contract.

Pricing was one of the reasons why I skipped last year's Nexus 6 too. If I were to pay top dollar for the device, I'd honestly be fine changing to an iPhone. But with the current Nexus phones back to the usual price structure, the 5X is pretty much a no brainer.

I admit I am still looking at the 6P, but still gotta get over the heft and looks, but if not the 5X is really fine with me.

An Afternoon of Char Siew & Coffee

Lunch at Old Airport Road where I visited Roast Paradise again (really awesome char siew!), followed by coffee at Percolate where I had some quiet time doing work on my own.

On another note, the MacBook's battery is alright, but could be better, mine is the 2011 model and it lasted me about 2 hours with some photo work and powerpoint slides. Am hoping I could squeeze out more than double that kind of lifespan with my next MBP purchase.

Broadwell This & Skylake That - MacBook Pro Thoughts

2015's about the time where I should be refreshing my MacBook Pro. My last purchase was back in early 2011 and it was an awesome laptop, it's currently in bad shape but overall still performing alright in most situations.

I was expecting a new MBP 15 inch to be released earlier this year but instead, Apple did a refresh on the 13 inch model and introduced a new MacBook.

Apart from that though, the 15 inch is rumored to be released later this year when the higher more powerful quadcore variants of the Broadwell chips will be released.

I don't update myself that often, but now I'm learning that Broadwell is actually a delayed chip meant for early 2014 (Was released Oct 14), and come summer of 2015, Skylake is set to launch, supposedly the next big leap in Intel's line up.

I shall put the technical stuff aside and simply say:

Early 2011 MacBook Pros to Early 2015 13 Inch Chips - Similar, just better (faster and power efficient)

Skylake Chips - New architecture, new features (wireless charging, wireless display in built), and of course, fast and power efficient.

Personally I'm hoping Apple's next laptop will jump straight to the Skylake chips, but I guess we'll have to see. Not sure if they will hop on the wireless charging bandwagon but one can only hope and wonder how they will implement it.

Ultimate Direction, AK and SJ Vests Version 2.0

Version 1 came out over a year ago, Eve and Adrian are using them, and now a version 2 is out.

My Nathan pack is starting to fall apart, it's served me well, no need to upgrade yet but these two models, the Anton Krupicka and Scott Jurek, are worth giving a thought towards if I'm intending to buy.

Ken Box - Crazy Cart Gymkhana Parody

This is an actual toy you can purchase, cool!

My Potential Olympus OM-D E-M1 Setup

I swear, I had written a crap load of stuff for the past hour, and accidentally hit the undo button and *poof*...everything went missing!

So here goes again...

I finally decided after some time to put my deposit down for the pre-order of the Olympus OM-D E-M1...yay!

It was a hard decision, I was planning between getting the body alone or the body with the 12-40mm (Full Frame 24-80mm Equivalent) f2.8 constant aperture pro zoom lens which was a new lens from Oly.

After some thought and reviewing my past photos on Aperture, I noticed whenever I used my zooms, I almost pass the FF80mm mark every time, hitting at about FF100mm and above, so while the lens was awesome, it wasn't practical...plus is was $1,000.

Olympus M.Zuiko 14-150mm f4.0-5.6 - Full Frame 28-300mm Equivalent

My final setup decision would be one similar to my current Canon 450D setup, a multipurpose zoom, and one solid prime.

As mentioned earlier, the 14-150mm became the obvious choice after reviewing my Aperture samples and realising I always hit the high end of the focal range. Plus after reading up the reviews and viewing the samples (Link), I think this would be the go-to all rounder walk-about lens for the time being.

Panasonic Leica DG Summilux 25mm f1.4 - Full Frame 50mm Equivalent

The Panasonic Leica 25mm was quite a no brainer. My Sigma 30mm f1.4 for the Canon 450D was an awesome lens, it took great snaps and at a really nice focal range (FF 48mm Equivalent). I needed a replacement, and after reading a lot of positive reviews, testing the lens myself, and checking out a few more samples online (Link), it was pretty obvious this would be it.

The OM-D E-M1 body alone will retail at S$1,948.00, while the two lenses, purchased second hand will roughly set me back another S$1,200...that's a whooping S$3,148 for the entire purchase...ouch!

Then again when you put it into perspective, I am upgrading from the lowest of the Canon DSLR range, to the highest end M43 system camera...so I guess the cost is somewhat expected, plus it's overall still smaller or somewhat close to the size of my current DSLR setup. Win.

Olympus OM-D E-M1 - More Poisoning

The Olympus OM-D E-M1 is Out

Been eyeing an upgrade for my camera some time now, the 450D has been around for a good 5 years and it's time to get sth else. I was initially thinking of the Canon 70D but as I began to note, my setup would get heavier and heavier down the road.

So I ditched the idea, and started looking at Micro Four Thirds. The OM-D E-M5 was a good camera in the little time I had to play with it, and now the OM-D E-M1 is out, it's not a successor, rather, a high end version. 

Which brings me to budget...S$1,948 body only, meaning if I get a second hand 25mm 1.4 Prime lens off Clubsnap, my total would be about $2,600? Yikes. 

I'll hang back and let the reviews flow in before I make a decision, but so far the reviews seem rather pleasing on a whole. Check out Robin Wong's and The Camera Store's review at the bottom.

Robin Wong's OM-D EM-1 Review

Olympus OMD & Fuji x100s Comparison - Noise and Bokeh

Disregard the color, I believe we didn't make an effort to sync white balance.

Both at iso2500, both at f2, in about roughly the same composition.

Fuji x100s, iso2500, f2, Shutter 1/20

Olympus OMD EM5, iso2500, f2, Shutter 1/40

I'm guessing the difference in shutter speed had something to do with the focal length of our lens.

As you can see, with a larger sensor, it seems the Fuji has a better bokeh at f2 than the Olympus OMD. I recalled someone mentioning that Bokeh f2.8 on an APSC sensor is equivalent to f4 for a FF 5D MKII...maybe that's why the 24-105mm was set at f4 which was sufficient for FF with nice background blurs.

Fuji x100s, iso2500

Olympus OMD EM5, iso2500

The x100s does low light better than the Olympus IMHO, of course since it has the bigger sensor the dots are more refined, less jagged compared to the OMD. I did feel at some point that some of the smoothness did feel a bit fake, almost noise-ninja like processing, especially when you look at human skin and clothing texture, noise-ninja does the same smoothing out the way Fuji does with its lowlight shots. But then again between that and the OMD's noise handling, I'd pick the Fuji because I'd likely end up sending the OMD through noise-ninja to clear it up anyway, which is what Fuji has already done so I skip one step.

Overall both are great cameras. I thought the white balance on the OMD for that evening was a bit bland, it didn't pop, but maybe I didn't set the settings correctly for the camera, overall it can be amended PP via Aperture.

Olympus OMD & Canon 450D - 50mm Equivalent f1.4 Bokeh Test

Canon

OMD

Canon

OMD

Canon

OMD

Canon

OMD

Canon

OMD

Didn't write down the exif, but basically each photo replica was taken using the same iso and aperture settings, left in Aperture Priority mode.

They say the Micro 4/3 sensor being smaller, produces a less creamy bokeh as compared to APSC and Full Frame. I never really scrutinised that, but looking at the pictures above, you can see there is a slight difference in bokeh, the OMD definitely has a less creamy bokeh than the Canon, especially with the shot of the pen and screwdriver where the black plastic bag in the background isn't as blurred on the OMD compared to the Canon.

That said, if it weren't for the comparison shots, the OMD still does a pretty good job, especially with the 25mm Prime.

Canon 70D Announced

Officially announced. The specs are pretty good, not mind blowing, but compared to my 450D, it does offer a whole lot more!

Where it seems to be revolutionary though, is in its video department, where constant auto focus is now one if its key features, with a "Dual Pixel CMOS AF" sensor. Too much tech jargon, check out the review on DP if you're interested.

Here's a video made by Canon showing off the capabilities of the camera in video mode with different lenses.

I think the camera would make a great upgrade from what I'm currently using though I didn't factor the possibility of getting a camera in this year's finance.

Would KIV this product for sure. =)

Westone ADV - Just When I Bought My Westone 1

Water Resistant, Audiophile Grade, For Sports.

With features like "Reflective Cable", "Magnesium Unibody" and "IPX-3 Weather Resistant"

NICE!

But ok la, the price tag means I probably wouldn't have bothered to buy it either.

More Info HERE

Anti-Drip Mug

A Visit to Zhirong's Office

Dropped by Zhirong's office to pay them a visit while waiting for Babe to end work last night. Quite cool to see how much has changed since November.

His brother Zhihao just started a Skate Scooter company last year, and while his current models look so so to me, the upcoming ones look fancy! Dare I say even more chio than your nonsense Skate Scooters you buy at Giant!

2012 Model

2013 Models...I believe these are the Skinnys

And their no joke too...$399-499 for the premium models, which I hear are still cheaper than the high end models from the USA going at $799-999...and they don't look pretty at all!

These are a niche hobby after all, not to be mistaken with the kids scooters. Think Aleoca vs Cannandale.

Zhirong's office is now piled with a lot of stuff, it's very his style, kinda hoarder-ish...lol. They're now huge on drones and what not, even bumped into Mac Aw whom I haven't seen in a damn long time!

Glad to have spent some time catching up with the group, really looking forward to seeing Zhihao's business kick off.

EL-X And Signa

Saw Colin's post on the new range of Vibrams and now I'm considering holding back my purchases until I see the new products first.

The EL-X is really nice, and then I saw the Signa, which gave me somewhat of a Batman armor overlay kinda vibe...really cool! Not sure if it will be available locally though.

Skora Phase X Running Shoes

These looks sexy! And the white below isn't a color option, it's suppose to be the color of the shoe when fully reflected!

You can check out their website by visiting the link HERE.

Balanced

Ran today, and got to check out New Balance's latest offering, their MR10 minimus is damn nice! 4mm drop though.

Aprilia & Their Scoots

Was randomly browsing and came across these, did not know Aprilia made scooters, but then again I guess since they make bikes, why not scoots right?

I guess it's true what they say, some times you don't notice something until you start looking them up.

Damn cute la. =)

Sportcity One

Mojito

Scarabeo