Pho U Review

The Northwest burbs finally have a respectable pho stop. Pho U(23 E. Dundee Rd, Buffalo Grove) has been serving up their noodle soup for almost a year now, and last weekend when I was sitting down to my big bowl of pho, it finally dawned on me: review this place dummy.

If you don't know, pho is Vietnamese rice noodle soup made with beef broth served with a side plate of lime slices, bean sprouts, peppers and fresh herbs. Traditionally considered peasant food, Pho has quickly found a home in the hearts of cuisine connoisseurs around the world.

If you've already had your fill of pho, try some of there other dishes like cold soba, or the marinated shaved pork.

Unlike most pho shops around, Pho U is surprisingly clean and supports a modern decor. Not to mention, the wait staff is always great and know their pho.

Don't think you'll be paying big prices at Pho U. You can expect to pay just over $10 a person for appetizers and entrees. If you've never tried Vietnamese cuisine, Pho is a safe first go around.

Rating: 9/10

2012: SERIOUSLY?

2012. What can I say? I understand in disaster movies like these you have to suspend reality, but Roland Emmerich made a more believable movie when he had Will Smith team up with Jeff Goldblum to fight aliens in Independence Day. Which, by the way, thank goodness those alien computers were Mac compatible.

In this latest apocalyptic feature, hometown boy John Cusack plays Jackson Curtis, a no name divorced writer, who finds himself trying to unite his family while out running an exploding Earth. While on the other side of the country Dr. Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Eljiofor) tries to wrangle world leaders, and the super rich in a top secret plan to survive the end of days, while preserving the humanity of the human race on the side.

The story lines are too convoluted, the characters, with the exception of maybe Cusack are one-dimensional, and the dramatic scenes literally bored me to sleep.

As for the special effects, they're good, but they still didn't help make the movie any better. I didn't believe the characters were in danger. Apparentyly everyone in that movie can fly like a Topper Harley, Goose, Ice Man, and Maverick all rolled into one. It was more like watching a nature documentary on steroids.

I didn't feel any real suspense or anticipation until hour eight of the movie, when they drop all the CG effects and start using the water tank sets.

On the good side... Woody Harrelson has a great cameo, and I thought about Zombieland for about five minutes.

Rating: 3/10

I hate to spoil, but I can't help myself. Why would you build the largest boats ever conceived of, in the history of the human race, at the top of the Himalayas? You are going to have to sail those giant ass ships through a mountain range. Not to mention the shipping cost of moving the raw materials up a mountain. 2012. Seriously?

Droid: Full Review

I've been test running the Droid for a week now, and this phone is legit. That's not to say it doesn't have its shortcomings. I'm not going to get into the technical specs, you can get those here.

The Good: Phones are supposed to make phone calls, and since I've switched from my Juke, several people have commented on the improved voice clarity. The video player is really crisp. I've actually found the MP4 fomrat I was using compressed the video too much; making the resolution too pixilated. So I had to switch from a 176x144 to a 352x288 output. The Browser is nice and fast. When I compared it side by side with my friend's iPhone, it loaded pages faster both over Wi-Fi and the 3G networks, but there have been reports online of the browser battle going the other way around I have become a big fan of the of the pull down menu on the Driod. It's a nice little tab that stores all your notices, email, Text messages, voice mail, etc, and let's you know what've missed.

The Surprising: I initially wanted the phone because of the slide out QWERTY keyboard, but the touch screen keyboard responds so well, I find myself using it more than I thought I would be. Smart phones today live and die by their apps. While the Android Market boast 10,000 applications, many free, and while it may take some hunting to find the really well made ones, they're out there, and more are added every day.

The Bad: The Android 2.0 OS did freeze up on me once since I've had it. I think it's because the app I was using was designed for the original android OS. While I was running the app, slid open the keyboard and the phone froze up. One other OS note, sliding between the panes is a little choppy. Not so much a bad feature, as a quirk, the volume for the built in voice navigation system comes off as a little soft spoken, and the voice itself is awfully robotesque. I still have not been able to sync all my contacts from my Facebook account with my old phonebook. The phone just won't let me. I've also found the battery life is far from even tolerable. The phone can not go a whole night of regular use without needing to be plugged in.

Overall, the Droid is not only a great phone, but a great piece of technology. But it will not be the one to topple the iPhone.

Bored to Death Season Finale

It's over, but it's not done. Last night saw the season finale of HBO's Bored to Death, but the comedy noir has already been renewed for a second season, so fans will only have to wait a couple months for Jason Schwartzman to reprise his role as author turned armature detective Jonathan Ames.


Last night's season finale centered around the much anticipated boxing matches between rivaling magazine tycoons George Christopher (Ted Danson) and Richard Antrem (Oliver Platt), with Jonathan and Ray (http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/477f3b6bc5/between-two-ferns-with-zach-galifianakis-from-between-two-ferns-comedy-deathray-and-zach-galifianakis) filling the two undercard fights against their comical counterparts. We also fallow Jonathan as he puts off writing to woo Stella (Jenny Slate), and track down a would be blackmailer.

If you've been watching the show thus far, this finale does a great job of staying the course. Usually this would be a bad thing, but Bored to Death is consistently such a great show; it's hard to bring that little extra to a finale. Schwartzman, Galifianakis, and Danson all did a wonderful job in last night's finale, and the cinematography, again, beautifully  makes New York City look less like the world's most trash covered island. But I would have to say "The Case of the Stolen Skateboard" and "The Case of the Stolen Sperm" were better episode.

With that said, Last night's episdoe was still very enjoyable, and I can't wait for the second season.
Rating: 8/10

Droid Review. Is it the iPhone Killer?

Verizon is hoping to topple Steve Jobs and his iPhone with the latest phone to hit the market The Droid.


Now I just picked this phone up earlier today, but I can already tell you this phone has a lot going for it.

The one feature which stands out the most for me is the screen. I always had trouble reading the screens off other phones, but the combonation of the Droid’s slightly larger screen, and its higher resolution, I can actually read web pages in their standard zoom.

While the screen was a pleasant surprise, the full QWERTY keyboard was the selling point for me. I’ve always have had trouble with the full touch phones, and the slide out keyboard works great, although sometimes the sliding feels a bit clunky.

The Droid also comes with a 16GB flash card. I’m dropping some tracks onto my player right now.

It also supports a 5 megapixel camera which I’ve already have been playing around with.

Is it the end all to be all when it comes to the cell phone game? No. Not even close. And with the iPhone 4G rumored to be debuting, I don’t think the Droid will be atop the cell phone hill for long, if at all.

I’ll have a full review for you later next week after I get some more time to play around with it.

$1 Cheeseburger Showdown

There's been a lot of mudsling lately, and no I'm not talking about Tuesday's off-year elections- that stuff is for nerds.

I'm talking about who deserves the $1 double cheese crown.

Raditude Review

Ratitude drops today. And Weezer's seventh album boast their most studio refined album yet; to the point of over doing it. The album jacket list five different producers, and another seven additional musicians. Most notable, Lil Wayne on the discs most annoying song "I Can't Stop Partying".

None of the songs really stand out. They all seem to blur together as most pop albums tend to do. I can already picture most of these songs blasting during the lame montage of every coming of age teen comedy next summer.

I do have to give credit when credit is due. Weezer has never been a band to make the same album twice. Each time they seem like something new, it's just this time, i wish it was something old.

The bottom line: if you like Beverly Hills, pick this up and enjoy it. If you like Pinkerton, skip this disc and wipe the tear from behind your black rimmed glasses.

Rating:5/10

At least the boys still have a sense of humor:

Trick 'r Treat Review

Make room on your DVD shelf for Trick 'r Treat. This straight to DVD holiday horror brings together four Halloween tales set in suburban Warren Valley, Ohio. Each story is tied together by the creepy half-pint pumpkin headed Sam.

This movie has a great mix of scares, gore, vampires, werewolves, drinking, and of course, classic cheesiness; keep an eye out for all the menacing candy bars.

There isn't a single thing I can think of wrong with this movie. Trick 'r treat is undeniable one of the best modern Halloween movies because it sticks to classic effects while still keeping an edgy contemporary feel. Just fast forward to the werewolf scene if you don't believe me.

In reality though, I can see why Warner Bros. sent this straight to DVD. Yes, this is a solid Halloween movie, but I can't see this doing well in theatres for more than two or three weeks before Halloween. But now, everyone will be putting Trick 'r Treat into their Halloween movie marathon.

Rating: 9/10

HULK CARVE!

After you get your pumpkins, there is only one logical step to take next: carve them up good.

Here are three kits for you kiddies so you can have the coolest Jack-O-Lantern on the block.  The days of triangle eyes and gapped tooth smiles are over.

I'll Tell You What I Want...

...What I really, really want. So I've made an executive decision to make Sundays my "I wish I could review..." day. For this first installment I found a tech toy which not only looks cool, but has a hilarious commercial.

Bleeps aside, the Powermat looks like and sounds like the wave of the future. There are currently two versions on the market, one for your home or office, and a travel style. The Powermat goes for a hundred bucks, and then you still have to get the receiver for your device. I know it might sound a little steep, but a boy can dream. Check out some of the other cool stuff the people at Powermat have come up with here.

Paranormal Activity Review

All you future movie makers out there take note. Paranormal Activity is a lesson in marketing. This movie reportedly cost only $15,000 to produce, and I'm sure by this point has made its money back off one screen through its explosive advertisement campaign. The micro-budget thriller premiered back in 2007 and has been building buzz on college campuses and small film festivals. Paramount finally picked up the movie in 2008 and slated it for limited release. The movie centers around a couple Mica and Katie, a young couple haunted by demon that has been following Katie since she was eight years old. Sceptic Mica buys top of the line video gear to try and catch the malevolent spirit on tape. What this movie does, which so few do today, is not show you the monster. There is no over the top special effect creature you see five minutes into the opening credits. This movie is that thing in the dark you're afraid of. What it does best is built the intensity of each scare. Each time you know something is coming, just not what. It's not fair to say this is a perfect horror film, or even close. The whole concept of the film is nothing new. The single camera movie was done better in Rec, and even the American version Quarantine. And the whole time during the film, I kept feeling like this was some sort of Blair Witch take off, especially towards the end. Over all though, I will admit this movie did genuinely scare me, and I'll give it an 8.5/10. This movie has definitely got me ready for the Halloween Season.

Widgets and Gadgets

All the kids today are raving about the sidebar. For those of you that don't know, a sidebar is is a handy way to show information and applications on the side of your desktop. In reality you can move them anywhere, but most people keep them to the right side. Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft all have their own versions of these apps. Some are very useful for the super computer savvy trying to keep tabs on their computer's performance, like this one from Microsoft. Others, are pretty silly, but who can say "no" to a hungry kitty as it chases your mouse around the screen.

I use a combination of Yahoo's Widgets, and Microsoft's gadgets. Just by glancing at my sidebar you can tell I have some pretty nerd ones, not to mention zombies lurking in the background.

Up top I have a handy little e-mail notifier. It simply tells me ow many new messages in my inbox. Since the battery died in my Casio CA53W-1, I dropped two more apps, the clock comes standard with Vista, and the Calculator comes in handy a lot more than you would think. Not to mention you can customize the colors to fit your style.

My media player also comes from Microsoft. It's a solid little music player and from what I can tell it also plays video files. The one major problem I have with it is the player doesn't respond to the hot keys on my keyboard. So when ever Yanni comes on I have to minimize all my windows to skip tracks.

For pictures I opted for this picture frame from Polaroid. It's no secret that I love old School Polaroid pictures and am disgusted by the prices for these vintage visual loveys. So this has become a close second. Say "Hi" to Tom and Wee-Wee.

And at the bottom for all us bookworms I've docked a quick link to Dictionary.com for quick look-ups.

Hit up the comments to let me know if there are any really good apps out there I'm missing out on, or if you just want to brag about your sidebar Setup

First Post

Welcome to my blog. I hope to have a layout and template done by the end of next week. I'm going to try really hard to get atleast five post a week up, and as I go they will get a little more regular. If somehow you find out about this site and you have anything you want reviewed shoot me an e-mail. Until we meet again...