design is good.

I didn’t really figure that I’d upgrade to the new iphone 3GS until only a few days ago. I had been following the growing buzz and hype about the upcoming June 19th release, and got a bit more pumped once I was able to apply the 3.0 upgrade to my 3G iPhone. The copy and paste, find my phone and other features were pretty solid, but the real appeal, for me, was just the new camera and the video capabilities, along with the faster processor.

I gave Rogers a call to get the lowdown on what the upgrade step would be, since I had bought the new 3G just last October, so while I wasn’t eligible for the hardware upgrade, I happen to manage out offices cell plans, so figured I’d just use my business partners upgrade eligibility since he’s happy with his first gen iPhone.

So this morning, on the way into work, I tried going by one of the more out-of-the-way Roger’s dealers in hopes that it wouldn’t be busy and I could get in and out in a jiffy. Nice fucking try. While I was only the second person in the store, they reps were on the phone with Roger’s central and were already pissed that it was taking them so long to do the first bunch of activations. Once again overwhelmed like they were when the 3G came out, Rogers simply wasn’t set up to handle the demand and procedure.

Once it was my turn, I asked for a 32GB black phone and wanted the 6GB data package as well. Once they determined it was an eligible upgrade, they told me it was going to take at least an hour to possible activate the phone, so if I wanted I could leave and come back later. Since I work downtown, I figured I’d just bail to the office and then race back to pick it up at lunch once they called me and let me know it was good to go. A few hours go by. And then a few more, no call. All the while I’m seeing some Twitter feeds come in saying how there’s a huge wait for the activation. Finally I call down there to check on it, and the rep tells me that it shouldn’t be much longer and that I can drop by on the way phone and it should be done by then.

I arrive to pick it up, and am then informed that while the activations are now going through, this applies only to new activations and that the hardware upgrade system is now causing them grief and things won’t be ready until Saturday now. Fine, I’m a somewhat patient guy, and hell, I do have a 3G already with the 3.0 software upgrade so what’s the big deal. So I leave, and then get a call like 10 minutes later from the same rep, asking for the postal code on our account. This is good right? He looks it up, and says that this is Dave’s account and that only he can make the purchase and hardware upgrade request. Bullshit… I’m the fucking account admin, so I tell him so, and get his “but I could be fired if I did it” retort. Fair enough. So now I have to call Roger’s to verify that I am indeed the admin for our system and CAN make it happen. That of course took a 30 minute wait and 2 minute conversation to extract. I call the guy back and let him know that he’s out to lunch and that I can upgrade the damn phone and that if he checks their system he should see that. He does, and of course verifies what I already knew.

I’m then told that I’ll get a call on Saturday when my phone is ready for pick up…

I won’t hold my breath.

Saturday update: Got the phone. Around 3pm on Saturday I had a call from the rep I was dealing with who informed me that my phone was ready to be picked up from the Okotoks location, since I had told them I lived out of town and didn’t want to have to drive all the way in to Calgary. I ended up making it about 15 minutes before closing, just as the lone employee helped a lady activate her new iPhone. The employee told me I would be the last one he did before closing, and couldn’t be happier about it, since he too was completely frustrated with the setup and system lags. He mention that Satur day wasnt much better than Friday for how long the activations were taking.

So at last I have the unit in my hot hands and have shot a load of video today (it’s Father’s Day so there was plenty of opportunity) and have loved how snappy and responsive the device is next to my 3G version. I’m doing some side by side comparisons of the photos tonight and will edit together some movies to post for family.

Oh and to Rogers: Screw you and maybe learn from this little experience a bit more than you did form the first go around with the 3G. While I do understand you are the sole option for iPhones in this great country, you don’t have to be a total dick about it.

Timely and interesting article from Wired I stumbled across this evening. I’m currently working on a redesign for our chicken wing project hotwings.ca, and there’s a ton of red worked into the design.

In the latest and most authoritative study on color’s cognitive effects, test subjects given attention-demanding tasks did best when primed with the color red. Asked to be creative, they responded best to blue.

“Color enhances performance,” said study co-author Juliet Zhu, a University of British Columbia psychologist.

Previous research on red’s effects on the brain have found that it attracts people to food and can enhance sexual arousal. But research on the color’s cognitive effects have been mixed: Studies have linked red to cognitive impairment on IQ tests, telemarketing pitches and analytical problem-solving, but also to improvements on low-demand tasks and clerical work. The latest findings tip the balance toward the red-as-brain-booster results and fits with work that showed a link between the color and arousal of neurobiological awareness and vigilance.

“Think about red, and what comes to mind: stop lights, stop signs, danger, ambulances,” said  Zhu. “People want to avoid those things, and that’s why they do better on detail-oriented tasks.”

While earlier studies tended not to test creativity, Zhu’s findings provide a plausible explanation for blue’s apparent role.

“Blue is the color of the sky, the ocean, safety,” she said. “When their environment is safe, people are more explorative.”

Full article.

Came across this posting of some useful and fun apps for your Mac if you’re like me, and into all sorts of design work, web production, illustrating and work flow management.

http://www.noupe.com/tools/15-incredible-mac-apps-for-freelance-web-designers.html