Goodbye Astro...hello Iggi

I know this is nothing compared to the tragedy that is Ondoy that fills the Net and TV and radio these days. But I hope no one minds if I blog about something un-Ondoy for a change...

Nakakainis na 'tong blogging year na 'to ha. Wala na kong sinabi kundi goodbye. Kung hindi tao, kagamitan naman yung namamaalam :(

Friday, the screen of Astrophone, my Motorola V3i, gave up on me. Its fliptop top has been loose for quite some time, and I was sort of expecting its demise already.

Saturday, I was still able to operate Astro using Motorola Phone Tools on a laptop. I was even able to backup my phonebook and calendar. But come Sunday, Astro wasn't cooperating anymore. It couldn't be detected by Phone Tools.

Tuesday, I finally went out of the house and I was able to buy a replacement phone. At first, I toured the open shops (it was only 10am then, lotsa shops were still closed or just opening) looking for a Motorola phone. The idea was that I could simply transfer my backed up phonebook from Astro into my new phone using Phone Tools. Alas, I was surprised to find out that Motorola phones have been phased out already. Ngek. I guess I've been out of the mobile phone market for so long.

Finally, I reentered one of the decent-looking shops in Parksquare 1 and asked for any model of phone that they had for under P2,000. I was offered some Torque phone for P999 - I've never heard of that brand so I asked for any Nokia phones. I was shown the Nokia 1661.

My requirements for a phone are pretty simple. It has to be able to hold a good number of messages and contact numbers, and it has to have a calendar where I could set alarms - I'm a very forgetful person, you see. The Nokia 1661 had those features - plus other features I didn't mind having too!

I haven't fully explored Iggi yet - yes, I find the need to name my devices when I blog about them - but so far I'm pretty much satisfied with its features, given its affordable price of P1,850 (cash; it's P2,000 if you use your credit card).

Some feaures that are new to me (never had these in my phones before) were the flashlight, the radio, and a spreadsheet - this cool app that lets you log your daily and monthly expenses (I'm actually excited to use it hehe; I wonder if it'll help cut down my spending though :P ). And games include Nature Park (no idea what that is; haven't tried it out yet), Bounce, and SUDOKU! Hehehe. So yeah, I'm quite happy with Iggi, considering that I didn't do any research prior to buying it, as I would usually do when scouting out electronics.

So there...goodbye Astro, the most pogi phone I've ever had. You were great while you lasted. I will miss your 80's TV show ringtones (Astroboy for Andrew, Bioman for the bio unit peeps, Shaider for other Pisay peeps, Perfect Strangers for my family, McGyver for my girls, Thundercats for everyone else). I will miss taking impromptu pics and vids with your camera. I will miss playing FrancisM hits on your iTunes.

But I'm sure Iggi will be a good phone to me. Wag lang siyang...never mind. Ayokong magdilang anghel ;)

Ehehe, ang haba ng blog, para lang sa isang telepono.

P.S. If you think I snubbed your texts/calls over the weekend, that's because I was nursing a dying phone ;) If I snub your texts/calls from now on, that's because I'm rebuilding my phonebook :D