Otterbox Commuter for Samsung Galaxy S4

I bought the Otterbox Commuter for the Samsung S4, which I wrote in my previous post here. I am a great fan of the Otterbox products. It is a reliable product with an excellent customer service. If there is any fault on their products, they would provide a replacement item. I wrote about my experience dealing with them in several of my earlier postings.

I would prefer the Otterbox Defender as it provides the ultimate protection, against dust and water but the handphone becomes a bulky. It is quite unsightly with such a bulky phone sticking out of your front pants pocket. So I have decided to get the Commuter. There was a price reduction to SGD$39 from SGD$49 because no one is buying the S4 anymore due to S5 being out in the market.

Here are the unboxing photos:

Front box: Price reduction

For the Galaxy S4.

Back packaging. 2 layer protection with screen
protector provided.

Comparing against the Samsung S4.

Contents: The silicone, the plastic and the screen protector.

A great case indeed.

The Samsung S4 came with a plastic protector which I
have left on. So I will keep the Otterbox screen protector.

The silicone goes on the S4. A snug fit.

I was worried with the headphone cover as
it was flapping out. Could this be a
production mistake?

Similarly with the charging port cover. Nothing
is holding it down. 

Plastic outer layer is placed and the headphone
is locked down.

Similarly with the charging port. The cover is
tied down by the plastic layer.

Altogether now. Front.

The back.

Another view.

Nice colour combination.

Samsung Galaxy S4: Unboxing

I have moved to a new company. It provides systems and solutions for the fund management and wealth management space. I am comparing my new firm with my previous workplace and it is definitely better. There is more staff and more structured compared to the 7-man operation working off from a service office.

The new workplace provided a new phone for me. It is the Samsung Galaxy S4. It is a step back from the current S5 but it is a new Android experience for me. All these while, I have always been an iPhone person. I liked it and I thought it was the best phone I have ever used, until I used the S4. 

For my iPhone, I am on an old plan which provides 12GB of data. The telcos' are not providing these plan anymore. The maximum on a brand new plan is 4GB. So if I recontract my plan, it will revert back to 4GB. So i have swapped out the SIM cards between the S4 and my iPhone. My S4 now has 12Gb of data but the 4G network is with the iPhone, which is quite redundant.

Couple of things wow me over

- the large screen

- the removal battery. I am getting very bad battery life for my iPhone. Having a interchangeable battery  on the S4 helps.

- the upgrade of memory. I bought a 16GB SD card which was a mistake. I should have bought a 32GB SD card instead.  

Unfortunately, I am quite late on the Android bandwagon. As can be seen by these post. But I am quite sold on the S4. 

The unboxing photos. 

The Samsung Galaxy S4 front box.

Left view of the box.

The phone.

The peripherals.

Under the phone. A useful manual of transferring contacts from other phone
to the S4

Peripherals: UK plug adaptor, charging cable and handsfree.

With the manuals.

Another view of the UK plug adaptor.

The Samsung S4, activated.

I have to admit the screen resolution is so much better than the iPhone 4. Maybe the iPhone 4 is using old screen resolution but photos on the S4 is quite brilliant.

Next post: the Otterbox Commuter cover for the S4.

Turi Beach Resort Batam: Stayed and Reviewed

We stayed at the Turi Beach Resort in Batam during the Easter Weekend. This is our 2nd time at this wonderful resort and we enjoyed it just as much as the 1st time.

There was several conditions that led us to stay at Turi Beach Batam

1. It was a short long weekend, so we wanted to go a place nearby, Malaysia or Indonesia. The travelling time to the location must be short.

2. We wanted to go to a resort with a decent beach facility and avoid the cities. So places like KL and staycation in Singapore was out.

3. So for beach resort, there were several choices like Bali, Bintan, Batam, Tioman and the nearby islands.

4. In the end it was down to either Bintan or Batam. I decided on Batam for our stay. Bintan feels too sterile for a resort. The land  where all the resorts sit, are leased by Singaporean government linked companies from the Indonesian government. I think part of the leasing agreement is kicking out all the local inhabitants outside the leased area. where it is fenced. Going in and out of this area is through a huge guarded gate. Beyond the gate is where you see the kampong houses of the local inhabitants. 

5. Turi Beach Batam, on the other hand, is located by the beach. The local inhabitants lived within driving distance with no demarcation between it and the hotel.

Getting to Turi Beach Batam is from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal to Nongsapura. It is a 45 minute ferry ride. Nongsapura is a quiet terminal. The queues are manageable and not long. Getting to Turi Beach from Nongsapura is a 10-15 minute drive.

Turi Beach Batam is part of the Nongsa Resort property group which comprises of

1) Turi Beach Resort
2) Nongsa Point Marina and Resort
3) Nongsa Village
4) Tamarin Santana Golf Club
5) Infinite Studios
6) Nongsapura Ferry Terminal

The Turi Beach Batam area is quite large.

The Tirta Wing is the new wing. There are 2 swimming pool.

The rooms are on a terrace layout for the Tirta Wing. That
ensures all rooms have a view of the beach. We stayed at room
412.

The original Riani Wing.

Check in counter. The lobby area is quite big. The hallway on
the right of the picture leads to the hotel rooms

Opposite view of the lobby area. On the right is the driveway to
the resort. I love the view of the ceiling roof.

The entrance to our 1 bedroom suite. Comes
with the opened-balcony on the left.

Another view of the balcony area and background.

There is also a staircase outside the entrance to the roof.

Upon entry, this is the living room area....

.....facing the tv. The door on the left leads to the bathroom.

The shower area. It is very clean and bright.

The wash-area.

Another view of the shower area.

Coming out of the toilet, we head to the left hallway into the ....

...the master bedroom. The room is quite big.

View of the bed.

The huge bed faces the TV. The wardrobe on the right.
The door leads to the other bathroom.

The toilet area of the bathroom. It is very clean and bright.

The shower area with the bathtub next to it.

View from the bedroom window.

Another view.

Along the balcony, there are 2 tree trunk benches and a dining
table at the end.

The dining table on the balcony is a very nice touch.

View from outside the balcony. The swimming pool is in the
middle of the picture.

A view of the beach from the balcony.

Part of the swimming pool can be seen here.

A view of the jetty at low tide.

A view of the beach area at low tide. I think this is a nice
composition.

There was a private party at night near the pool

The jetty at high tide.

Another view.

The jetty.

If you are bored of the beach, there is the swimming pool.

Or there is another pool not far away.

Initially we had a problem with the bedroom aircon. It was not as cold as the living room. But the technical staff and the housekeeping went all out to ensure that that aircon was cold by the end of the day. They took extra effort and came to our room couple of times to make sure it was at least pleasant. Thankfully, it was fixed on our 2nd day.

Otherwise, the resort is very nice place for a weekend stay. There were people from Japan, Korean, Indians, Caucasions and locals. It was a good mix but the area was so big that it does not feel it was crowded.. If you are looking for a getaway with the family, this is a definite recommendation.

If you have any queries or if you have stayed here before, let me know how was your experience by the comments below.