I upgraded my iPhone 3GS to iOS4 when it first came out two weeks ago and since then have been running into small annoyances/bugs.
Toy Story 3
Over the weekend we went to see “Toy Story 3” in 3D at our local theater which I had been looking forward to since seeing the first two original films in their 3D double-feature last fall. As usual, Pixar has delivered another smash hit. TS3 is an amazing, beautifully animated film with a ton of touching and emotional scenes (much like “Up!“).
The “Day & Night” short at the beginning was also very well done, a cool combination of traditional and 3D digital animation. Great storytelling without a single line of dialog.
Some random thoughts (without spoilers):
- I immediately noticed the “95” on the train in the opening sequence (this appears in every Pixar film and is a reference to the year “Toy Story” was released
- I felt there was a Darth Vader/Emperor nod between Baby and Lotso at the end
- did you see the Pizza Planet truck?
- the scene in the incinerator … wow, powerful imagery (and more great storytelling without actual dialog)
- Spanish Buzz: ¡muy bueno!
- want more easter eggs?
I’ve read that some people enjoyed the movie more in 2D rather than 3D, saying that the glasses make the overall film darker and not as vibrant. The glasses didn’t really bother me though, and the 3D is not meant to be “in your face” 3D but instead adds depth to the scenes which I thought was cool. Even my daughter, who is wary of 3D films (after a bad experience at MuppetVision 3D when she was little) kept the glasses on the entire time.
Will there be a TS4? There are no plans for one right now, but it sounds like there will be a TS short in front of “Cars 2” next summer. Personally, I felt TS3 was a perfect ending to the trilogy and should left to stand on its own.
TRENDnet internet cameras
Another piece of tech I implemented before we went on our vacation roadtrip was a series of TRENDnet wireless internet cameras so we could keep an eye on the house while we were away.
Polaroid PoGo
Back in March, in preparation for our recent family roadtrip vacation, I purchased the Polaroid PoGo Instant Mobile Printer. The tiny PoGo prints 2 x 3-inch borderless color images in under a minute onto ZINK (zero ink) paper.
Road Trip 2010: Day 9
Today was the longest driving day of the entire trip … not in total miles, but because at this point we were just anxious to get back home!
Road Trip 2010: Day 8
Our reservations for the tram to the top of the Arch were for 8:50 so we were up and out of the hotel by 8:15. We hit up a downtown Starbucks for our morning drinks and were in the parking garage of the Gateway Arch Riverfront area by 8:30.
Road Trip 2010: Day 7
By now we were pretty good at the morning routine: wake up, get dressed, pack, check out of the hotel, load the car, grab breakfast, and hit the road. Today was going to be a long driving day, all the way to St. Louis, so we planned to break it up with fun little side trips.
Road Trip 2010: Day 6
As was our new routine, we got up early, grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel, and then hit the road continuing West through the prairies on I-90.
Road Trip 2010: Day 5
We slept in again today which was nice and had breakfast in the hotel. While waiting for our laundry to dry my daughter and I went out to the basketball court and shot hoops for a bit. I also took my disposable camera from the caving trip over to Walgreen’s to have it developed before we left the area. Later that morning we went back to the mall to finish shopping (picking up some things we had seen yesterday).
Road Trip 2010: Day 4
Ah, a day without (major) driving!
We slept in after our late (early!) arrival yesterday (this morning!) which was fine since the mall didn’t open until 10am. My daughter and I took a dip in the hotel pool and then cleaned up and joined my wife for breakfast. Then it was off to the largest indoor mall in the country: the Mall of America (or MoA).