New Droid RAZR

Despite the weak threats and agreements of a set spending limit for gifts, my wonderful girlfriend decided I needed a new phone and bought me a Motorola Droid RAZR. YES!!! Coming from Motorola's first Android-powered offering, the Droid, I was clearly ecstatic to have the upgrade.

Since I purchased the Droid in 2009 I've been very happy with Android and how it works. It's still a newer operating system and has its issues, but overall it's a fantastic move in the right direction. I've only had a few complaints about the OS, but most of that was due to overloading my phone with too much junk for it to handle. A feature I was not aware of was the ability for the phone to not only retrieve my contacts, but the actual contact icons for each. If that wasn't enough, it even brought down my original desktop background and restored my screen brightness preference. Creepy, but WAY nice.

Now, the RAZR is something of a mini-tablet, in all actuality. It has some serious big boy processing power, very generous on-board storage and tons of memory. The screen is big, but not unwieldy. The commercials always say "impossibly thin", and I must say: I agree. Feels like a wafer in your hands. Light, easy to hold, super smooth. The kevlar-reinforced case and Corning Gorilla Glass screen helps longevity, I'm sure. I have an Otter Box case on it and it makes it fatter (only way to describe it), but it's insurance against my inevitable phone-related mishaps.

My original Droid had the standard music player that came with it, but it was relatively "blah". My headphone jack had started to misbehave and cut out the left channel regularly, so I never really used my phone for extended times at work for listening to music. Fast forward to the RAZR. The Motorola Music suite is a completely new interface and not the stock Android player. It has an equalizer built into the player to tune the music to your tastes, which is nice. The "shuffle" functionality doesn't really work as you'd expect. You can't just click the "shuffle" icon and expect it to auto-shuffle. It literally shuffles the playlist and continues on. The original Droid's music player shuffled song every time you hit the next track button. However, I will say that the sound quality is unbelievable on the RAZR. Not only depth, but overall clarity. Bass notes are deeper, highs are crisper and the mids are cleaner. I'm hearing facets of music I didn't have before, which makes me love the songs that much more. Another cool feature? Select songs have lyrics scroll as the song hits that line. Very nice surprise!

One of the benefits of having a new phone is the ability to utilize Verizon's 4G LTE network. I'm a believer. My best test, to date, using the SpeedTest.Net Android app netter 14.5 MB download and 7.8 MB upload. I've seen 4G LTE speeds up to 20+ MB download. Absolutely insane. Haven't noticed a huge battery drain while on the 4G LTE network, as most of the battery drain is because I'm busy surfing the internet, streaming video or music or going through email. At work we don't have very good reception so I turn the LTE option off in my Wireless & Networks section in my settings. Allows me to still get decent 3G coverage without compromising battery life.

Battery on this phone is reasonable, considering everything you can do. I honestly don't see a difference between my original Droid and my RAZR for battery life. I use both quite often at work and they both use battery as expected. I also turn my screen down to about 20% to try and keep battery usage lower. It's still insanely clear, just doesn't blind me.

Overall, I am very pleased with the phone and would definitely recommend it for everyone. Next step? Ice Cream Sandwich! Come on Verizon, get on the ball. :)

Big Lake + Sketchy Ice = Not OK

Some poor folks trying their luck on Mille Lacs just before Christmas had a rude awakening to the uncertainty of ice fishing. Check the KARE 11 news link below:

KARE 11 Story

Me and Kenny Wayne Shepherd!

Sorry, this isn't an outdoor-related post, but just had to share. I won a meet and greet with some tickets to the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band concert last night. Great show and got a nice photo op with the band!

Deer Vision

A lot of folks are always concerned about which camo pattern works best. Some like Mossy Oak, some like RealTree, some like off-brands. Which is best? For an ungulate, it doesn't matter as much as you think. Here is some food for thought from Texas Hunt Works. I picked this up while waiting for a query to run at work and thought it bears mentioning to those in the market for some expensive camo.

Texas Hunt Works Article