Author: zen

Run for Food: 500km milestone and new exercise gears

1 Comment

It has been 5 months since I first started running. Since my last blog post, I have not been tracking my running mileage. That is because I have decided to stop the mileage chase, and instead focus on running at the right heartbeat zone, i.e. aerobic zone, for now. Quoting the explanation of the aerobic zone

Training in this zone will develop your cardiovascular system. The body’s ability to transport oxygen to, and carbon dioxide away from, the working muscles can be developed and improved. As you become fitter and stronger from training in this zone it will be possible to run some of your long weekend runs at up to 75%, so getting the benefits of some fat burning and improved aerobic capacity.

This means monitoring my heartbeat and ensuring my running pace keeps my heartbeat stays within the aerobic zone. In theory it sounds easy but application is difficult, because I have to deliberately slow down even if I am still comfortable in running a faster pace. Then I receive a Runkeeper alert email after my usual Friday run.

500km milestone

Wow, I have covered 500km after 5 months of running! My new goal is to be able to complete a 15km distance run with a steady pace, by end July. As such, I am focusing on interval  and endurance (distance and duration) training while continue to keep my heartbeat at the aerobic zone. The pace may be a minute or two slower than previous, but I do find myself pacing better at each run.

While I am continuing my 3 times a week running routine, averaging a total distance of 25-30km/week,  I figure I need to alternate my running with something else, such as cycling. I can swim, but I just hate the idea of exercising in the water. So cycling comes naturally to my mind, and in fact I have been contemplating for the new exercise for the past 2 weeks. I began to research on possible cycling equipments I could use. To be honest, I have never owned a bicycle in my life. When I was a kid, my parents had always thought cycling was dangerous for me. The only times they would allow me to cycle were when we were at East Coast Park for picnic outings. I also remember that my first road cycling was when my junior college classmates and myself set up a round island cycling trip. I had to borrow a bicycle from my sister’s friend, and it was just a single-speed road bike! I still recall the jittery feeling when I first rode on the road after collecting the bike. While I was cycling to the school to meet my classmates, I actually lost balance and fell off from the bike ! I have been keeping that incident under wraps so to avoid unnecessary nagging (or parental escalation) but guess now the truth is out … Ha Ha!

Brompton .. made in England

I explored various options; road bike, mountain bike, hybrid, etc. There are simply too many variants, too many brands and models to choose from. I was confused and lost until a good friend casually suggested that I could look at folding bike. It is a brilliant suggestion because I can bring the folding bike to train, and therefore I can also cycle and train ride to work. He offered me to try out his Strida folding bicycle (which by the way, I thought was neatly designed and engineered with a high tech look) but mentally I was not ready to take up his offer. I don’t like the idea of trying out something if I have not made up my mind!

Two weeks later and now, I decide I should just get the folding bicycle, and before I could go back to my friend to do a trial run (or cycle), I chance upon an online forum thread that is discussing about Brompton bicycle. Very quickly, I am sold with the Brompton folding bicycle, supposedly the “Rolls Royce of folding bicycle”. But I am put off by its expensive price tag. As if it is fated, somebody notices my interest, and make a quick offer to sell his and his wife’s Brompton bicycles to me. The bikes are only 5-6 months old, and have clocked less than 100km each. At $400 discount off for each bike, it has definitely helped to accelerate my decision making process.  So before I know, we are proud owners of these gems.

Brompton M6R Raw Lacquer (Foreground) and M6R (Pink in background)

I am very excited now. Now I have another new mantra, which is “Cycle for Food”. For now, I have completed 503.66km (of running) through 83 running activities. Here’s a wish for many more years for Running for Food … oh and Cycling too! 🙂

Ganbatte!  がんばって！

Vanilla Ice-Cream in Galaxy Nexus Sandwich

14 Comments

Ever since I had to give up my recent acquired Sony flagship mobile phone, Xperia S, I looked around in the market for a replacement.

I had wanted to try out Windows Phone. I think Microsoft has finally got their formula right this time round, after failing to gain a foothold in the mobile market with their Windows CE and Windows Mobile products  since 2000. The tiled interface is as evolutionary and refreshing as Apple’s multi touch interface. Fragmentation, which appeared to the biggest culprit in Microsoft’s previous failures in mobile market, is to some extent addressed by Microsoft’s attempt to put in restriction in how manufacturers and developers build and develop their handsets and applications respectively. The end result is a consistent interface, and much tighter control on how applications are being executed and rendered. The key draw back for me is the hardware, as the display and camera functions are not inspiring. I thought I would just get a cheap Windows Phone (since all Windows Phone looks and function the same!) as an interim, but eventually settled with Google Galaxy Nexus because I have always wanted to try out the pure Google experience.

galaxy nexus

Galaxy Nexus

Google Galaxy Nexus, manufactured by Samsung, runs on the latest Android operating system, i.e. Ice-Cream Sandwich (ICS) . With Google’s ICS, they seemed to have finally fixed the memory management issues and streamlined the user experience. I have to say it is a product, out of the box (because with Android being a open source, it doesn’t take a genius to do magic wonder in order to improve its usability), that would seriously compete with the likes of current Windows Phone and iOS. It may seemed like Google’s past desserts (Cupcake, Eclair, Frosted Yorgurt, etc) were a failure, or at best an alpha/beta of their operating system. However, if you trace through Android history, from the first public release (Cupcake) in 2009 to now, versus how long Microsoft put their act together, it is actually quite a remarkable progress. One might argue that Apple did it right in the first iPhone product,  but remember Apple was clever in its product release strategy. It had deliberately omitted key phone function features, and progressively released these missing functions as it rolled out its iPhone roadmap over the course of 5 years.

Galaxy Nexus is made by Samsung

Galaxy Nexus is made by Samsung

Back to Galaxy Nexus, I am not quite impressed by its form factor. It looks as if Samsung has deliberately short changed its development just to make sure it does not cannibalised its own flagship products, i.e. Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note. The 1280×720 screen is nothing to shout about, until you put it on the brightest setting.  That said, when I put it side by side with Galaxy S2 or Lumia 800 (both of which have the same resolution of 800×480 pixels), it does look as good, if not better, given its higher resolution display. The back battery cover feels plasticky,  almost becoming a classic trademark of Samsung products. Camera is mediocre, as it fares badly when taken under dim lighting condition or trying to capture a fast moving object. How I miss my Xperia S for that matter! Don’t get me wrong, Galaxy Nexus has a decent hardware specification, but my take is that it is a jack of all trades, master of none. That said, I do like the ICS soft keys in the Galaxy Nexus with its backlit implementation. Beneath the soft keys, a multicolored notification LED is featured which glows on selected event such as a missed call or unread message. You can download the app Light Flow to customize your LED configuration, in terms of the events to be notified, colour of the LED notification, or even the rate of the LED pulse!

ICS compliant application will now have all menus at the top corner, freeing up the bottom screen from the cluttered menu

Inside Galaxy Nexus however, the user experience is superb given that it is running on the Ice-Cream Sandwich. Unfortunately, at the point when I got the phone, it was still running on 4.0.3, not 4.0.4 which offers an even more optimal performance. (Nothing stopping me from upgrading it to 4.0.4 though) Regardless, I understand that 4.0.4 was shortly released “OTA” after a few weeks. On the positive notes, the user interface is polished and uncluttered. The multi tasking of applications does not has any slight adverse effect on the overall phone performance. The UI navigation experience is as “buttery” smooth as you can imagine. With a pure Google experience, it also means I do not have those bloated applications that offer bells and whistles at the expense of performance. Given that I have most of my resources resided in Google (mails, contacts, calendar appointments, photos, etc), I have immediate access to every of my content and information the moment I signed into my Google account. No hassle of synchronising or data migration!

But it did not take me too long to switch to another phone. Not because Galaxy Nexus is bad, but because I have been eyeing on HTC One X after hearing how HTC had improved its camera function over the year. That has been my biggest gripe of HTC products (amongst others). That said, after using HTC One X for two weeks now, there were and are times where I still miss Galaxy Nexus for its clean ICS implementation!

Run for Food: 12 km and 400 km milestones and some new gears

4 Comments

Ever since I started extending my run to and beyond 10km, I find that I need some energy boosting fluids or at least water during the run in order to keep myself hydrated and going.  I was not sure if I ever need a fuel belt, but I do observed that I usually feel very fatigued in my last 2-3 kms of the 10-11km run, a sign of dehydration. In one of the recent runs, I ran with a hand carried bottle of energy drink, and find that the run is less taxing towards the end given that I kept myself hydrated throughout the run.

Nathan Speed 2 Fuel Belt

So I decided that I should get a fuel belt, as it was so cumbersome to hand carry a bottle of water during a run. Eventually, I got this Nathan Speed 2 Waistpack with two 10 ounce flasks from a sports shop at Changi Point. It was not cheap, but luckily the mall was running a mall-wide promotion so I got 20% off the retail price, and I think it costs me around $48.

I put this into good use today on 26th April, when I try to attempt “something further” than 11km run.  After my night conference at 12.30am, I change up to get ready for the run, just as I had done at this hour previously. Little do I realize that it is a mistake since I no longer just do a 30 mins interval run. My last 11km run was carried out at 11pm. By the time I finish the run, it is close to 02:30am! In fact, along the journey, I did feel a little sleepy at times.

Finishing a 12km run

The good thing about the run though is that I did not feel as tired as before, as I replenished myself with water every 15-20 minutes. At one point, I do feel tough running, especially in the 10th and 11th kilometres, as my ankles seem to be weakening. My injury stricken ankles are really my weakest link in my stamina building exercise. Nevertheless, I manage to overcome the physical pain, interestingly by strengthening my mental desire to finish the run. In the last 2 km, I could comfortably pick up the pace and finish the run with 12km covered. It is a milestone for me since it is a step closer to my goal of finishing a 15km run by end July.

New Balance Minimus Zero

By now,  I have completed 415.15km with 73 activities. I am running fewer now, but longer distance. At the same time, my Adidas running shoe is wearing out fast, and I feel it has quite a poor wear rate. It does not help with a recent trip over a uneven ground as I found out the side canvas is tearing. As such I have also added Minimus Zero, New Balance’s latest running shoe, to my running gear inventory. I have been planning to get a Vibram Five Fingers “Barefoot” running shoe, but has put the thought on hold after doing my research. Not that it is bad, but I think it will require a lot of getting use to, and I thought maybe I should try a “near” Barefoot running shoe first before going for the “extreme”. Minimus Zero seems to fit the bill and I will be trying it out soon.

Farewell, my good friend

Leave a comment

It is supposed to be a night packed with some personal errands. But all these take a back burner, when I learn of the news of a friend’s passing, and incidentally via Facebook. I cannot believe myself. I have thought he was just tagged in a condolence posting expressed to someone else. The reality soon sets in as I see an unusual stream of condolence postings on his Facebook wall.


Image

Simon, myself and Karsoon

Our first interaction started way back in 2003. We have a common passion in cars. I was driving a Volkswagen and he driving an Audi. We love to “personalise” our ride. We hit it off immediately with something common and he is always there whenever you need his help or advise, especially with his calm composure and analytical balance thinking. Our friendship took a cooling off as we have our own priorities, but we continue to stay in contact via email and subsequently via Facebook. We met for a lunch a few years ago, we had a good catch up, reminiscing the past and talk about the current.  I promised that we should do it more often, but the next meeting did not materialize.

Just last week, I read some of his Facebook updates, and have wanted to tell him that he looks good and we should have a catch up soon. But not knowing when I can commit the meet up, I procrastinated and now I regret.

12 years ago, when another dear friend was called home by God, I told myself how we cannot take things for granted, and we need to cherish the people around us. I have obviously not learnt that lesson, and am now blaming myself for not taking that step forward. It is a darn shitty feeling. Words cannot describe how I feel now, and more importantly, the loss of a good friend.

All I can only do now, is to quietly pray for his glorious journey home.

Rest in peace, Simon.

Run for Food: Four months and going strong

Leave a comment

Since I accomplish my 10km goal two weeks ago, I went on to set a new goal, which is to complete 15km by 31st July. While this means I have 4 months to prepare myself for this stretched goal, I know the extra 5km will be a lot more challenging than what I have overcome in the last 4 months.

So I try to complete at least one 10km run every week. Earlier this week, I was hoping to push myself to do a 11km run, although mentally I merely conditioned myself up for just a 10km run. Eventually I could only complete 10.5km distance, which goes to show how (lack of) mental strength can influence one’s ability to complete a task.

15km goal

15km goal

Then two days ago, I decided I would stick to a 60 minute run but with a relatively faster pace (anything less than 7 min/km for a 60 minute run is considered fast at this moment for me :P) It was  a good workout, as I managed to maintain an average pace of 6.49min/km (excluding the first 5 minute of slow warm up jogging). Probably one of the fastest pace I had, if not fastest, for the distance I was going through.

Today, I decide to try for the 11km distance again. I plan my route carefully so that it will be mostly flat ground for most part of the run, and also keep the run within East Coast Park as much as possible.

I start the run at a decent pace (7:08 min/km) but gradually slow down to an average of 7:25-7:30min/km as I know I cannot afford to “puncture” at the early stage of the run. The 4km run to East Coast Park en route Mountbatten and Tanjong Rhu Road is therefore easy. Physically I feel I am still in splendid condition so the entire 4km run along East Coast Park remains relaxed. (In retrospect, I could have increased my pace to 7:10-7:15min/km …)  Nevertheless, I do start to feel the strain coming on my two ankles as I reach the 6-7km, despite wearing a Phiten Titanium ankle brace on my left ankle. Thankfully, the strains remain to be just a small niggling pain and do not interrupt the run.

The 8th km is a difficult one though, particularly because I have to run across the highway via the overhead bridge.  Every time I reach the other side of the highway, my heart beat would usually jump up by 10, given the elevation I have to go through.

With just 2-3km away from my planned destination, it does spur me forward. Sometimes, you just need to constantly find the right motivation to keep you going. 🙂 In the last 2km, I pick up my pace and accelerate gradually. I find that I am not struggling despite the acceleration, so now my challenge is to extend such accelerated pace for another 1km in my subsequent runs! Finally, by the time I hit my planned destination mark, I complete the entire 11.01km route. Another milestone to my 15km goal has attained!

T.G.I. Friday's Jack Daniel's Grilled Baby Back Ribs

As of 20th April, I have completed 71 running activities, and 393.98km. Specifically, this week I have completed a total distance of 30.64km, by far the furthest I have covered within a week. Guess what’s the reward for this accomplishment feat?

After all, that’s the whole motivation behind each run — “Run for Food”  🙂

Transforming NAS into Music Cloud

Leave a comment

For a long while, I have been using my QNAP 419+ NAS (Network-attached Storage) to store all my media, including my mp3 songs ripped from my CD,  photos and home videos. The good thing about storing them in NAS is I do not need to worry about replicating and synchronising these media files  into devices where I want the media to be played in.  My NAS runs a Universal Plug and Play (UPNP) server (powered by TwonkyMedia), so any “UPNP capable” device (mobile phones, tablets, TV, etc) can just stream musics, videos or photos wirelessly from the NAS.

Music over Cloud

If there is any shortcoming of such set up, it’s that the media content can only be accessible within the home network. (There’s also a encoding challenge, but that’ll not be discussed here) I don’t think it is a big problem for photos and videos, as I would usually share them via my Picasa Album  (for Photos) and YouTube (for Videos) if I want my family and friends to view them. However, for more than 2000 of music tracks that I have (in my NAS), I would not be able to access once I am in office, or on the road. For a long while, I have to make a copy of my mp3 library in my phone’s storage, until I recently discover that there’s a solution to overcome this shortcoming, thanks to the developer of Bubble UPNP.

Apart from downloading the Android App (from here), I need to install and run a Java-based software in my NAS. The prerequisite of this is therefore a Java Runtime executable available in my NAS. For a long while, this is the biggest stumbling block, as there is little support for ARM5 platform for Java, and I begin to regret not getting the x86-based 439 NAS. But it appears that Oracle has started the support for ARM5 platform, and here’s how I installed Bubble UPNP software in my NAS

  1. Download Java SE for embedded from here. You need to fill up the feedback form from Oracle though.
  2. Place the downloaded file (ejre-7-fcs-b147-linux-arm-sflt-headless-27_jun_2011.tar.gz) in the NAS’s /share/Public directory
  3. Download the JRE 1.7.0 package for QNAP from here
  4. Install the QPKG (QNAP Package) via the QPKG centre, accessible from the NAS administrator panel.
  5. Download Bubble UPNP server from here and follow the installation/execution instruction from here.

Viola, with a quick configuration on both the server (accessible via browser) and the Android client, I can now start accessing my mp3 over the internet, any time, anywhere!

Run for Food: 10 km milestone

2 Comments

Runkeeper came out with a feature recently, where one can add a goal and the activities would be used to track the progress of achieving the goal. The goal can be a running distance goal, a racing achievement, or simply a weight loss target.

10 km Goal Setting

Since I have been running 8-9 km frequently in recent runs, I thought I should set a goal, to push myself. So I set myself to target a 10km distance completion, by end May. It turns out within a week, I accomplish my goal, albeit unexpectedly.

On 4th April, I start with the intent to complete a 9km workout. Having ran through Mountbatten area in the previous run, I decide to stretch myself with a new route where I will run to Katong Park, before heading back via East Coast Park. I start the run a little too aggressive though, with the first km’s pace at 6.29min/km, and maintaining between 6.40min/km to 7.05min/km over the next 3km. I know this is not sustainable, so I begin to slow down my pace, but still average around 7.20min/km. By then, I am already running along East Coast Park, and the fresh air and park serenity help to keep the run going.

Running enroute Katong Park and East Coast Park

By the time I reach the defunct East Coast Mc’Donald, I have covered 8km. I know if I were to run all the way home from here, I stand a very good chance of  hitting the 10km mark! Cautiously, I slow down my pace in the 9th km, keeping at the pace of 7.38min/km. It is a calculated move that pays off. In the last 1km, I steadily and progressively increase my pace, averaging at 6.32min/km. The thoughts that I’ll be finishing the run and that I may reach my goal way in advance, motivates me to accelerate in the last km. Amazingly, by the time I reach the door step of my home, the distance covered is 10.01km!  There you go, meeting my goal within a week of setting. The reality is up until now, I have never thought I will ever cover a 10km distance, certainly not with my condition 3 months ago.

Achieving my goal, 4 weeks in advance!

By now, I have completed 64 running activities, covering a distance 325.97km, since 15th Dec 2011.  “Run for food” continues 🙂  Yaaaaaahooooo!

 

Run for Food: 10 kg off, 4″ gone, Mee Pok stays

Leave a comment

new record!

3 months of workout, finally breaks the 85 mark, lost more than 4 inches, and 10 kg of body mass. Considering that I have not changed my diet plan (ok, I do take a more “normal” in-take these days, but still, I love all the mee poks and or-luas and can’t live without them), I think it’s a great progress, isn’t it?

Run for Food: Worst and Best Run … all in Week 15

Leave a comment

Have my worst and best run all within week 15.

I would have thought my first run in December last year must be the worst run of the decade. After all, I can only run 500m before dropping to a walk to catch my breathe. But no, after the run on 19th March, I have to say that has to be the worst run. Granted, I ran slightly earlier than usual, at 4pm. It would be hotter than usual, and indeed the heat was a killer. I also felt a strain on both my feet. But it was my mental condition that failed me miserably in that run. 3km into the run, my mind started psycho’ing me that the weather is too hot, my feet are breaking, etc. I gave in eventually, disrupted the run and walked for almost 3km. I picked up my pace again in the last 1km, covering a total distance of 7.41km,  but the fact I surrendered myself totally during the run, was unforgiving.

In the same week later, I stretched myself further to complete a 9km run, the furthest distance I have covered to-date. The run was not entirely easy, although the first 6km was quite comfortable, but perhaps I had over estimated myself and did not pace myself well enough. On the 7th km, I was struggling with my pace that any slower I would be just doing a brisk walking. Fortunately, I regrouped myself again in the last 2km, and managed to finish the run as planned.

a 9km running log

By now, I’ve completed 58 activities, 280.73km and I am just few kilometres away from hitting my month’s 100km mark 🙂

Xperia S – Sony eXperience?

4 Comments

It has been a while since I blog about gadgets. My current Galaxy S II is probably the first gadget for a long while where I have kept it for more than six months; 8 months to be exact. There is really no new smart phones around that would excite me to change. HTC seems to have over sensationalized its sensation products (although I just learnt that its camera capability has improved since the last HTC phone I have used). That said, there are a couple of products that I am looking forward to.

Xperia

First, there’s Galaxy Nexus, a Google-branded phone made by Samsung. I have always wanted to try “Out of the Box” or “Vanilla” Android phone. Then there’s Sony’s Xperia S, Sony’s first product after their break up with Ericsson. I wonder if the DNA of Xperia S will be “Sony inspired”, or inheriting the mediocre Sony Ericsson genes.

Galaxy Nexus was first released to the market. But the lure of what is considered as Sony’s first Android product in Xperia S, especially upon hearing a reliable news that it’ll be  released 2 weeks later, made me decide to wait for the latter instead. On the first day when Xperia S was sold in the retail,  I went to the outlet and bought a set without even waiting for other customers’ feedbacks.

The first impression of the minimalist-design hardware gives me a mixed feeling. I like the cool looking clear bar at the bottom of the screen. It reminds me of the design found in Sony’s LCD  TV products. However, it is just  bells and whistles, as it just display the icons of the  touch panel functions above it, and nothing else (edit: I was told it could also act as light notification, but am not sure about it).  I wonder what goes behind the mind of the designer. As I figure out eventually, the design is probably meant to align with the new  UI design in Google ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Google Android OS platform). Still, given that the bar takes up a good chunk of the phone form factor, I thought it is a bad design.

Sleeky but not functional Light Bar

The phone feels thicker and heavier than the sleek Sony Ericsson Arc I had used previously. So perhaps it is a sign of Sony trying to get rid of its SonyEricsson DNA, albeit not in the direction I would have expected from a consumer company like Sony. The back battery cover is removable, even though the battery is not and there is no removable storage space. On the other hand, the battery cover fitment is not perfect, leaving an uneven gap all around. In nut shell, the phone does not wow me like the Arc did on first physical encounter.

But I have to say, the phone grows on me after a while, primarily by its superior screen and camera function. First on the screen. The BRAVIA HD technology, along with its high 1280×720 resolution, renders rich colour saturation and image sharpness. The photos and videos look amazingly stunning with the colour vibrants and black deep. While it looks stunning on photos and video playback, I thought in some applications, the screen display looks a bit wash out, perhaps by the brightness and contrast level that is tuned towards HD video playback.

Sony Screen with Bravia HD engine

The camera, powered by Sony’s Exmor R for mobile CMOS sensor, reaffirms my belief that Sony produces one of the best, if not best phone camera in the market. A friend of mine did tell me that Apple’s  iPhone 4S has the best optic lens in the mobile market, but I think Sony’s Xperia S is not far behind, if not the best. Pitting the camera function of Samsung Galaxy S II against that of Xperia S, makes me realize how Samsung has stagnated in its innovation. I remembered I was most impressed by Samsung Galaxy S’s camera function, thinking on how it had the best mobile camera capability in the market then. Perhaps the DNA of the two consumer giants (Sony and Samsung), plays a big part in this gulf.

Ravishing screen and sublime photographing capability aside, Xperia S still has some unfinished work to do in order to be the leader of its pack. Although none of the phone manufacturers has yet launched an ICS out-of-the-box product, it is still disappointing to see Sony releasing a Gingerbread based Xperia S. The phone still experiences random moments of lags, slight enough for me to notice it, and the Sony’s home launcher force-closes on me a few times. That said, Sony’s home launcher and widgets have gone through some significant improvement, both visually and functionally. But I think they could have channelled their time and resources on improving the overall user experience, instead of bridging the gaps of Gingerbread.

Sony phone with the old Sony Ericsson Logo.

Unfortunately, the deal breaker for me is the Sony Xperia S’s security management. The issue is how the phone handles the “IdleTimeoutFrequencyValue” parameter, part of the security policy enforced by my company’s Exchange Server. Based on my knowledge, the parameter, configurable only by exchange server administrator, implies the longest acceptable time that the device can idle before the phone needs to be locked.  I know my company’s administrator had initially set as “1 minute”  before settled for “40 minutes”, as many employees felt that the policy was “too strict”. Xperia S takes this parameter literally, and will only lock my phone after 40 minutes of idle. There is no way I can force a lock; For all the previous phones that I have used, I could either set a shorter time-out myself, or force a lock by pressing the power button. With this “bug”, I have to bear the risk of leaving my phone unprotected for as long as 40 minutes. A few years ago, this is probably not a big deal for me. However, ever since I experience the loss of my phone within 5 minutes after misplacing it in a public place, I become more conscious about mobile security, especially with more confidential and/or sensitive information stored in our mobile devices these days.

So it is a “Short eXperience” for me, perhaps that’s what Xperia S stands for me. But if you don’t have a strict company exchange server administrator like mine (that configures every parameters of the policy), can live with some of the niggling issues highlighted above, I am sure it’ll be a “Splendid eXperience” for you.