Ceddy's Random

Ceddy's Random - Vlogs

Monday, June 3, 2024

Is Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Worth It?



Hello Everyone! And welcome back to another tech review.

Long Time Apple User...

I've been a long-time iPhone user and stuck in the Apple ecosystem for the past 10 years. While brainstorming and writing this article, I am using my MacBook Air M1 to write this content. 

With that being said, the migration process from iPhone to Android is a pretty difficult task. It took me a day and a half to process the migration using a USB type C cord via Samsung Switch. But needless to say, change is inevitable and change is good. (Lately this week, I found out that I can easily transfer a copy of my iCloud Photos to Google Photos and I was able to transfer all of them within 3 days' worth of 123 GB of images and videos, that being done in the cloud transfer with just an easy click)

As most of my colleagues used iPhones, I asked them why they stuck to them, and most of them answered was due to better privacy and security. 

I'm not biased with both ecosystems but...

Well, I am not a pro of Android or iPhone at all but from a tech perspective especially since we are emerging with these technologies, Android has continuously progressed and built a robust security framework for each device adding more security layers depending on the brand of the device. Take an example from Samsung. They have Samsung Knox - the security arm of Samsung protecting the device 24/7 from some potential data breaches and have partnered with McAfee to protect its devices from any malware or viruses that may harm the device. 

Take it from Samsung...


Change is good!

Let's take a look at Samsung. I bought a Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra last month. And this is my   1 month review and is it really worth it? Well, as a tech enthusiast, I am always experimenting and trying all the ecosystems as much as I can and I took the leap of faith to try a new ecosystem- Android preferred brand - Samsung. And I did not regret switching.

I'm not gonna discuss the technicality specifications in this article rather I am sharing my productivity and usability experience with the device. 

Not a snobby screen...

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra LTPO AMOLED Screen

The device's screen is incredible! It is definitely a feast for the eyes. The enormous 6.8-inch AMOLED LTPO display is stunning and perfect for watching any content that you can throw on it. It is also bright even when I use it in broad daylight.

The Camera Department is OUTSTANDING!...

Camera Department: Pro Settings


I use its camera for productivity and creating content and I was amazed at how the camera output was. Zooming and cropping any photo or footage is brilliant, and the stabilization is almost as good as using a handheld stabilizer. I even tried to use its 100x zoom and to my surprise, it reached the moon and it is still sharp!

 I primarily use the pro video feature of the device as it is easy for me to tweak all the advanced settings and this is shocking to me as compared to the iPhone (its inbuilt camera app) which doesn't have the advanced settings unless you have to purchase an app to utilize its feature such as Filmic Pro.

Every penny is worth it!

The S24 Ultra'Beautyty Lenses


With the S24 Ultra, you get what you pay for and it's totally worth it.  

One thing that I liked about the Apple ecosystem is the Airdrop as it's easy for me to transfer wirelessly from my iPhone to my Macbook easily, but it takes time to transfer as it is needed to download first in the cloud and do the transfer. But what about Android to Macbook?

Well, it is easy, There is one software that is free to download and that software is Local Send. It is similar to Airdrop but any Android device can easily share and receive files either Windows or even my Macbook.

And I noticed that it was even faster to send a file almost the same as Airdrop. So sending a file between my devices is easy.

A battery that keeps you all day...




Battery-wise, it is boosted with 5000 mAh.  I still have enough juice by the end of the day for around 30 percent- that includes playing intense games such as Honkai Star Rail or Mobile Legends. 

It can also share some juice with another NFC-enabled device. Just toggle on the powersharing and voila, you can put the NFC-enabled device at the back of the S24 Ultra.

Note-taking is worth it!

S-Pen included in S24 Ultra


Hi! this is me- S-Pen!


One thing that boosts my productivity is the S Pen. It includes an S Pen; I always use it for note-taking and productivity brainstorming for other content.

The Ecosystem that matters...



To make my ecosystem work together, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 and Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2. All of them work perfectly and harmoniously. Hear me out, I used to have an Apple Watch SE and Series 6 and my Apple AirPods Pro. Both ecosystems work great in my opinion but every time I use my AirPods Pro, the receiver of my call usually complains a lot that they don't hear me and the voice clarity is terrible except for the Galaxy Buds Pro 2. They are saying that it's clear and the voice clarity is better. 

I am going to share another review about the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 and Airbuds Pro 2 in another blog.

Is it worth it?



Yes! Using the phone for listening to music, daily social media content usage, productivity, using the camera, and all. Anything you can throw at it. It's a wonderful device made by Samsung. 

The enhanced privacy and security layered and Samsung Cloud partnered with Google services is top-notch for me. 

I am satisfied and happy with this device and looking forward to using it the longer.


Thanks for reading my article and See you again next time.


-Ceddy

Wednesday, May 1, 2024

The Rise of Artificial Intelligence - Ceddy's Random



We live in a constantly changing and fast-paced world and rely upon everything in technology. The moment you are born, AI already has clutched on you. And that sounds scary but it is what it is. 

Welcoming the 21st century, we had a lot of surprising promises of technological advancement. 

As a copywriter and content writer for 10 years, I've seen a lot of changes and how AI helps otherwise convey data to an optimum result.

It breaks my heart to see that some of the contents that I've seen and read were mostly made or assisted by a generative AI. Though there's a benefit to getting ideas from this artificial intelligence, nothing beats the mind of a human to create such content. By the end of the day, We humans insinuated the creation of AI, however, this should be utilized in good moderation.

As a content writer. Plagiarism is the bad apple of content creation. In a nutshell, commanding ChatGPT to create content about such a topic can be conveyed within minutes. Though the content was made by ChatGPT, I am still concerned about plagiarism. However, the takeaway about it is that ChatGPT cannot copy and paste content.

Just so you know, ChatGPT is developed by OpenAI. And can generate responses based on arrays of datasets. That includes books, articles, websites, and other forms of written content synthesizing it and creating a new response.  


On the other side. Last year (2023) Google's Gemini AI was officially launched. It's the same as ChatGPT (chatbot). It is so advanced that In the medical field, Gemini AI  can be used to assist doctors in diagnosing diseases. The same goes for financial trading to make trading decisions. And my favorite part- The virtual assistant.

 I recently purchased a flagship phone of Samsung. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra - is powered by AI. As an iPhone user for 10 years, I dared to take a leap and jump to the Android family. Climbing out to the walled garden of Apple and seeing the rainbow from the other side feels great!. And that didn't compromise me to try all the good stuff - including the AI features which are very usable for productivity.

Speaking of Gemini AI, it was way more powerful and more concise to use on my phone. The chatbot is more concise and the way it responds to my commands is more accurate and responds more humanly compared to ChatGPT. 

In comparison with ChatGPT and Gemini AI. All were great but each of them has their own disadvantages as well. 

Gemini AI is the most unique,  offering a better user experience, it can generate an AI image and website links, and it's available to Google Workspace but with a subscription per month and depends on the tier level. 

Either way. AI is very helpful to us in reducing time costs, streamlining, and automating repetitive tasks but can also be disadvantageous such as the potential loss of human jobs and the lack of human emotion and creativity (as I've said before, nothing beats humans for creating such content).


Thats all. And thanks for reading my content.


-Ceddy




Wednesday, April 24, 2024

How Can I Withdraw Paypal Money to Any Bank Account in UAE




Hello everyone! Ceddy here and welcome back for another informative content.

If you are new to publishing content and now monetized, the second thing that you want to set up is how you will receive your payment.

By this time, your advertising partner will inform you that the easiest way to get paid is through PayPal.


If you are living in and working in the UAE. Chances are, you have a savings or bank account in the country. Paypal on the other side allows it to transfer your funds directly to any UAE savings account. 

Here's the step-by-step process on how to transfer your PayPal funds to your local bank account.


Let's say, you already created and linked your bank account. Please do note as well that linking a savings account (IBAN) and linking a debit card is a different process. Linking debit cards to your PayPal account allows you to use your debit card funds to shop online using your PayPal account, on the other hand. Linking a savings account with your IBAN number in PayPal is the correct way to transfer your funds.

So don't get confused from both ways.


I used my mobile to initiate the fund transfer, otherwise you can use your desktop or laptop as well. 

First, open your PayPal mobile app and select your current balance. 

It will open another section and will ask you to enter the specific amount you wish to transfer.




Step 1, Click the pen icon and enter the desired amount you wish to transfer.

Step 2, Choose the desired saving account that you saved before.

Step 3, Purpose of payment. Since I don't transfer to anyone and since I own the account. I choose OAT or Own Account Transfer.

Step 4 Before proceeding with the transfer, make sure to read and understand that there is a conversion fee and some fees from PayPal then proceed to transfer.


    After the steps above, a confirmation is shown below that your transfer has been processed successfully.





You will receive an email notification as a copy of your transaction. 


All details will be shown as well with real-time tracking on your PayPal App.

Please do note that fees may be different for banks and for your countries as well. Check with PayPal customer service or you can chat with them to further assist you. 

Thats it! 

Thank you so much for reading another informative content. See you again next time!

--Ceddy





Best Affiliate Marketing Website in 2024





Affiliate Network who?

Hello Everyone! If you are new to my blog, you might notice that my website consists of advertisements and affiliates. But for today's content. I am sharing with you the affiliate website that I currently joined for the past years.


Which affiliate network do I  highly recommend?


CJ Affiliate Network

If you want to utilize the ad space on your website. Joining an affiliate would be advantageous. And it's another extra income on top of your current ad provider. 

I have two affiliate partners. One is the CJ Affiliate Network and Impact.




CJ Affiliate formerly known as Commission Junction is one of the largest affiliate marketing networks in the world. It connects advertisers with publishers often bloggers like Me. 


Most of the well-known brands in the travel category are partnered with CJ Affiliate. My website is affiliated with Namecheap, PUMA, and Qatar Airways. 

The commission structure depends on the affiliate brand that you are currently connected or affiliated with. 



The implementation of affiliate banner links depends on the brand and is very easy to implement whether in javascript or HTML code.  Here's a sample screenshot above.

However, I noticed that the user interface takes time to load such as visiting to other tabs, even having a strong internet connection takes a lot of time to load.

The commission payout threshold is 100 USD and wire transfer is the best way to receive the funds.

However, when it comes to tenurity of the affiliate brand, the brand has the right to terminate the contract with the publisher. And I've encountered it many times.

To join as a publisher, head over to this link. 


Another affiliate marketing website...

Is Impact.com ...

Compared to CJ Impact. The user interaction on its dashboard is fast and responsive. The flexibility and commission structure depends on the affiliate brand as well. 

When it comes to link implementation, I can see that Impact is more focused on the link directly rather than providing an advertisement banner. 


There is an option to join a pre-qualified brand, and you can join any of these brands instantly. 





I am currently affiliated with the brands shown above and each of the brands provides a commission structure accordingly. When it comes to the flexibility of affiliates to join, Impact has the best affiliates starting from small to medium affiliates but provides generous commissions.




Impact is more focused on creating a direct link and you can attach it to any website or any social media channels making it more flexible and advantageous to non-tech-savvy users.



When it comes to the withdrawal of commission, Impact can auto-withdraw your funds at a desired amount. As for me, It can auto-withdraw when it reaches 50 dirhams (my local currency) 


To join the Impact affiliate network, you can click this link. 


So that's a wrap! If you want to maximize your ad space on your website. Try to sign up for either of the two affiliate networks and let the commission keep coming.

Thanks for reading my blog and I Hope you learn something. Any questions, feel free to DM me or comment below. 


--Ceddy






Tuesday, April 23, 2024

 Is the Apple Watch Series 7 GPS 45 MM Version Good? 





Another Tech Review!




And I am back again for another tech review.

There is a quote about technology saying  " If you think technology can solve your security problems, then you don't understand the problems and you don't understand the technology" 

And it makes sense. People nowadays rely on technology to measure their health or use their smartwatches to monitor their fitness stats. Giant tech companies such as Apple, Garmin, and Fitbit are investing in this category providing great features so that consumers will be enticed to buy one. 


The Apple Walled Garden




And I am one of them. As you may know, all of my devices are tied up to the Apple ecosystem. Airpods work flawlessly with my Macbook and iPhone simultaneously as well as with my Apple Watch. Once you are locked into the walled garden. It is difficult to leave. And to add it up, I bought an Apple Watch.  Silly as may sound, it's not to show off to people that all of your products are made by Apple, though some of you might think that if you have Apple devices means it's classy and expensive. You are comparing it to a Gold. The advantage of Apple products is that if you want to sell them later, the value is much greater compared to Android devices. 


Healthwise...




My family has a long history of heart disease. My father passed away due to myocardial infarction same goes with my grandfather and my great-grandfather,  medical practitioners would abbreviate it to M.I. 

As I grew older, I became more health conscious, I avoided fatty foods, made sure that I walked at least 15 minutes every day, drank a lot of water, and slept at least 8 hours. 

2 years ago, I went to the hospital complaining about pain chest. This happened every time after a long day of work and stressed out. It was my first time to see an apparatus of an ECG Machine. There were a series of long coils with patches on them being patched to some parts of my body and throughout my chest.  After a few hours, I got the result, the doctor explained to me the result as there was a peak generated by the ECG. I forgot the terminologies the doctor had told me but I was given some medications right after.


My first time seeing and experiencing the ECG Machine...




After that consultation, I was more careful and adhered to a healthy diet and I felt better. 

I wanted to monitor my heart rate as well and later this year. I decided to purchase an Apple Watch Series 7, the 45 MM version. The main feature ( and selling point)  of this watch is that it offers the ECG feature. With a touch of your finger, the Apple watch systematically detects the heart pulse rate and sees the upper and lower chambers of your heart.  It then forwards the results to the health app which is built into the iPhone. The data that it gathers can be easily shared with your healthcare provider instantly. 

That is how convenient the Apple watch is.

Sometimes, If I feel uncomfortable or if I feel nervous. Apple watch detects my heart rate. It vibrates and notifies me that I have an erratic heart though it's only due to a feeling of nervousness. 


The Apple Watch features that I loved...



It can also measure how many hours is my sleep, it should be worn overnight to measure the exact hours and categorized into 3 parts. 





Blood oxygen measurement is also available though I don't use it but it's running in the background. If you walk for 15 minutes, the Apple Watch will vibrate and will ask you to record your steps.



make phone calls directly in Apple watch with built-in microphone and speaker


respond to messages with built-in keyboard


control my Spotify app



Entertainment-section, the Apple Watch Series 7 can also control music and has a built-in App Store to download Apple Watch applications. Spotify, YouTube music, and Watchtube - to watch YouTube videos, are some of the applications that I installed. 


Apple Pay is also available, to activate the Apple Watch, just press the power button and you are good to go. 

There are plenty of watch complications to choose from and it's readily available in the Apple Watch app, but I prefer to choose shuffled photos.

Checking notifications and replying to my friends via iMessage or SMS directly to the phone is very useful or just telling Siri to call someone or answer a call and use it hands-free while my phone is in my pocket. 


This is the Apple Watch with and without the strap...


The Apple Watch Series 7 GPS 45 MM version has a water resistance rating of 50 meters. It can be used for shallow-water activities like swimming in a pool or ocean.  

To learn more about its specifications, you can visit Apple's website by clicking this link.










Practically, Magic...


As Steve Jobs said. "It just works", and "It works like magic".

My Apple watch is my companion for my day-to-day routine. It helps me to be more productive and assures me that my health is on track. 

There are a lot of features which I have not mentioned. But these are some of the features that I'm using in my daily routine.


So if you may ask me. Is the Apple Watch Series 7 42mm a good product to buy in 2024? 

Absolutely! I highly recommend it.  As long as you have an iPhone, that wouldn't be a problem.

Thanks for reading my blog.


--Ceddy


Saturday, April 13, 2024

 

 iPhone 14 Pro Max 6 Months Long Term Review




Hello Everyone! Ceddy here and I am back again for another long-term tech review.
And I am going to share my long-term use of the iPhone 14 Pro Max. I choose the limited edition color of deep purple.


Switching from iPhone 13 Pro Max to 14 Pro Max





As you may know, I recently switched from iPhone 11 to 13 Pro Max last year. I've been using the 13 Pro Max for almost a year and decided to switch to the 14 Pro Max 6 months ago.

The overhyped marketing of the 14 Pro Max "Dynamic Island" and its feel-so-good marketing are one of the few reasons why I switched to their new flagship. 

I know it's not practical these days to go with the trend especially if the device that you are using is still working perfectly. But as a tech enthusiast, I took a gamble and decided to trade in my 13 Pro Max limited edition Alpine Green. Surprisingly, with almost a year of usage down to 96 percent of its battery life, I am still impressed that the value of trading it is still high compared to its predecessor's Android. I was able to trade in for the value of $405 compared to my original purchase of worth $805. That's half of the value of a year-old flagship device. Do note that upon selling my device, the iPhone 14 Pro Max is selling like a hotcake.


For some reason, I was not able to make an unboxing video due to the system constraints of my old Macbook before. 

The Dynamic Island- An Overhyped Marketing?






Well, I was so deeply impressed by the way Apple integrated this new type of technology into their product. The People from its human design interface division invested a lot to innovate. A small pill shape notch that some people would ignore it. Apple decided to utilize this feature so that instead of leaving it on standby, instead, people would interact with it. Though it's a pretty gimmicky feature, this pill-shaped interactive feature was not new at all. I remember the release of the LG V10 way back in October 2015. They have a similar feature but instead of having a small pill shape design, LG V10 comes with a small line bar on the top beside its earpiece. In my opinion, that didn't go well as planned. Apple has almost similar approach as per my observation. The only difference is how Apple innovates this technology. Their marketing is so good that the existing features seem to be new to everyone and people would really entice to get one. 

LG V10 via Phone Arena


For the first month of using the device, the fun intuitive, and interactive dynamic island works perfectly with a buttery smooth animation depending on which app you will use. For example, Spotify, if you wish to minimize the app, instead of the usual closing down transition of the app, the application goes up to the dynamic island mimicking a " genie in the bottle" effect. It works perfectly that you might want to do it all over, very satisfying. The same goes for the timer in the stock app. The dynamic island is open for developers wanting to integrate their app for whatever reason they wanted to. Some local app that has a feature integrated with the island is real-time tracking. If I wish to order food or grocery online, with the help of always-on display (AOD) and dynamic island, I can easily view what's the ETA of my order in real time. 

So far, there are a few apps that I used that do support the dynamic island, but as time goes by, there would be more additional apps would be joining.  As per my experience, using the dynamic island is cool but  I rarely use it afterward since interacting with the pill shape design can get a lot of smudges or fingerprints that can cause blurry images while taking a selfie since the front camera is aligned with the dynamic island, but this can be rectified by just cleaning the front lens easily. 

Front and Main Camera- Is it worth the upgrade?





Speaking of the front camera. The front camera now has a built-in autofocus with an enhanced portrait feature channeling to f1.4 for the depth of field. I'm not going to deep dive into all its camera specs, but as a person using the camera every day. I don't see any major changes with its main camera, though some specs have some changes, for me, it is just the same as adding the telephoto lens from its main camera has some great advantages especially if you are taking some still portrait shots that distance is really needed. Overall, the camera division of the iPhone is always great. The video quality is great too adding Dolby features, 4K, and all.

The ALWAYS ON DISPLAY- Finally! A deal breaker!



I mentioned above as well about the Always On Display (AOD). Among other iPhones. This is the first iPhone that utilizes the AOD feature, though android devices have been using this feature for a very long time, Apple finally utilized this feature.  My Samsung M52 5G has a built-in AOD. But it really amazed me how Apple uses it differently. For my M52, the AOD remains pitch black showing the text which is needed. But for the 14 Pro Max, AOD is still active but it is not sacrificing the true color of the wallpaper. It's impressive.


Battery Performance- Devour tasks but sips a little


Battery Life is always a swift, devouring task and sips a little. I charged my phone 100% in the morning around 10 AM going to work, and when I reached home by 10 PM, I still have 30% remaining battery and the battery health is at the highest peak of 100%. 

The A16 Bionic IS A BEAST!


Performance wise. I don't see any lags while using the device. Although it tends to get a bit warm when playing intense graphic games such as Genshin Impact, League of Legends, and Mobile Legends. I joined the beta program for iOS 17 and I noticed that it lags sometimes, not because of its processor which is the  Hexacore Apple A16 Bionic processor. The processor is a beast. Adding the 120hz refresh rate. All work flawlessly without any hiccups. I am enjoying watching youtube shorts and Instagram reels on this device, one of the reasons is the 120hz refresh rate. Everything moves so well and it is buttery. 

Built Quality- It's OKAY






The overall built quality is great though Apple used a stainless steel frame (previous iPhones use aluminum) and the 14 Pro Max is protected with a ceramic shield. My iPhone fell off a few times but with a protective casing (of course) yet it's still working perfectly. The 14 pro max is IP68 certified which means it can withstand submersion in water up to a maximum of 6 meters for 30 minutes and is dust resistant. I know it is not advisable to use your device inside the shower. But I always bring my phone, ever since I started using iPhone 11 onwards, I don't see any issues at all.  Though some experts would advise that the longer you use your device in the shower the chances of condensation will occur because of the warm water from the heater. I don't recommend bringing your devices either in the shower (but I do, haha)

So do I recommend the iPhone 14 Pro Max? 


A tricky answer. Yes, if you are using an old iPhone (not the 13 Pro Max). They have almost features minus the AOD and the dynamic island. It's worth the upgrade coming from an old iPhone.

No. If you are using the 13 Pro Max, which I used to have. But, if you have some extra money to shell out. Why not? 

Overall, if your device is still in perfect condition, can take good photos and devour tasks as you need. It's not necessarily to upgrade. Again, it's up to you. 

Thanks for reading and I'll see you again!

-Ceddy