samsung tablet Series

480 (1280 x 800) 10.1 @ dual 1.0
250 (1024 x 600) 7 @ 1.2 - ir
480 (1280 x 800) AMOLED 7.7 @ 1.4 - ir

the 7.7 normally retails for 700 becuase it has LTE,, the 250 version also comes with an IR

all reports that the AMOLED is better than the Ipad 3 in terms of display

USB 3.0 'speed'

all this future proofing is a hard gamble. Things will always be faster or sometimes get sent aside..
SATA-III - 6Gbit/sec
Sata II- 3Gbit/sec has a bandwidth of 600MB/s
Some high end SSD bare drives can write at well over 300MB/s 
Mechanical drives peak at a sustained 140-150MB/s or so.


SSD based raid USB3 connections can be 300MB/s

Clunky and manual way to redo your library

If you move media files around you'll end up with missing entries. I found it's easier to do the following to renew your media files on your local computer:

Stop service
Windows media plyer networksharing services

delete all files *.wmdb
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Media Player

restart the wdinows media player

Network players

 Network audio player streaming
Pandora 192K @ $36/year
Slacker 48$/year (radio
Slaker 120$/hear (ondemand) https://store.slacker.com/store/Subscriptions.do?source=ecom-footer
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funny that very few devices actually have the favorite or up / down

http://www.amazon.com/Aluratek-AIREC01F-WiFi-Internet-Radio/dp/B001PN8VLQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I3ALIT5ZIM0SSQ&colid=15MOGQ4GR0304

pandora is based on raw attributes of a song
Slacker is based on relationship

Shaw EXO

I'll be honest I haven't liked shaw in terms of how it forces you to go up tiers to get channels you exclusively watch. You'll need to buy basic cable and several other 'packages' and that really much of a choice.

I've you bought the bullet and still have TV (I don't really recommend it) you likely have a huge bill anyway I'm paying 150ish a month. The other day EXO was introduced and wanted to know more about it.

The main point I found out other thant VOD that I don't use or care about, it is NOT tied in anyway to the gateway service.

One gripe I had was the lack of uplink speed. Even the highest packages still was limited to 300k/second. This has changed with EXO. you now can get up to 3-5Mbit which is effectievly about 1Meg/second.

You will need a new modem which they sent and it will reek havock with your existing wireless adapter. Make sure you ask them to update the modem to 'bridge' mode which will turn off the wifi and effectivly turn it into a modem. note to telus, you better be able to do this to keep up.

So far it's been good. And the best part it's 10$ a month. I can deal with that.

One cavet. They now have bandwidth charges so don't expect you can blindly use. This will be a thorn on people's side if they use services like netflix, streaming media and of course 'sharing sites'. 

are you on your own wifi channel?

you my not know that encrypted wifi networks are not use channels. to increase the quality of your connection use this tool : meraki.com/stumbler to determine what channel is not being used then you can lock your router to a channel that isn't being used.

About Home Automation.

House automation is a gagetries dream. I bought into it years ago and have modules that seem like decades old. X10 technology started in the late 1970's they still sell it and from what I see that's all they can do is flog this 30 year old technology because it can't or wont be developed into something more. Be reminded that it seems to be the only widely deployed cheap home automation product. On the same note that it's cheap. It uses 300 Baud technology, has lag time, no confirmation of the signals that have been set out.  As the old saying goes.. you get what you pay for. If you can afford it go with Zwave.. but it will cost you 100% more.

http://www.automated.it/default.php?pagename=About
http://www.liveautomatic.com/reviews/home-automation/83-x10-insteon-and-z-wave-price-comparison
http://x10-mentor.com/

bridging: http://forums.homeseer.com/showthread.php?t=137269