why-pay?

With laptops becoming the next big electronic purchase among the gadget-conscious Pinoys, lately, there has been a rising trend of electronic stores investing on selling these portable computers with the hopes of cashing in on this market segment which only a couple of years ago was deemed to share only a small slice of the huge electronic consumer pie. Mobile Phones still have the stranglehold on the top spot but the steep price of its high end models is slowly bridging the "which should I buy gadget?" gap which once was the bane of laptop computer sales. Thanks in no small amount to the upsurge of LCD TVs that the price of manufacturing of these same LCDs used by laptops has gone down steadily hence making laptops more affordable to the spendthrift consumer


Multimedia and the internet are the major driving forces that dictate how the mobile phone's functionality is designed. Whereas before phones were just intended for voice communication, today, the vast multimedia content of the internet screams " You have to see and hear me " that ultimately you have to have 'em at the palm of your hand and which better device to pack all these up than your trusted 5110-now in steroids! Mobile phones have undergone severe mutations all of which took only a few years that the early buyers of the 51 and the 3210s must be up in arms yelling injustice they could very well merge with the dwindling Pepsi 249 movement to make a stronger case for consumer protection against the so called scheming "evil" enterprises.

Internet, audio-video player, calendar, word processing and a host of third party apps ably supported by your choice of operating system have become basic functions of the high end phones. Not to diminish the original intent of voice communication but the gamut of computer functions has rendered some mobile phones as being more of a computer. One in five persons would inevitably stop and think " Why settle for half baked computer functionality when you could very well have em in full yet still mobile?" Enter the laptop. Having waited in the wings for too long after it had been earlier regarded as "for business executives only", the new generation of cheaper laptops have given mobile phones a run for its money. ASUS, ACER, MSI, NEO-all cheap laptop brands getting the nods of the budget conscious buyers. Thanks to these brands, associating laptops exclusively to the filthy rich no longer holds wholly true. Professionals and students are the consumer groups that largely constitute the laptop buying public and the proliferation of Wi-fi hotspots, pioneered by coffeshops, not only have made laptop use in public places commonplace but it has also tickled these people's interest of wanting to be part of this novel synergy between technology and extravagant indulgence.

I like the idea of using my laptop in a coffee place or anywhere there is Wi-Fi. I'm not after being seen brandishing my laptop in between sipping fraps cause while I am entirely sold to the idea(laptop use in coffee places..and not the bragging!) I can count by the fingers of my hands how many times I've just done so......six! Six times and I've had my laptop for more than 2 years already.

I'd like to think of myself as being a techie but the watered down version cause the extent of my techie-ness is dictated only by my needs and interests(read:limited). I'm fascinated by wireless networking, internet in particular and this is what drives my enthusiasm to want to try laptop in public places(must have Wi-fi). Sadly, wi-fi use is not entirely free. More often than not, the wi-fi spots you'll scan are secured networks meaning you've to pay to get the username and the password prior to accessing. I project that pretty soon though, these establishments will give in and offer the wi-fi services free of charge. Two famous burger joints are paving the way towards this direction. Burger King and Mcdonald's have a number of branches offering free wi-fi. They haven't gone all out yet to promote it, perhaps they are still testing the waters, but while the dividends of increased patronage may not yet be apparent, when they completely promote themselves as wi-fi free areas I do hope that it sets a precedence for others to follow suit.

Tear down the walls of greed and monopoly. It's time to stand our ground. We have bore the brunt of VATs, and hidden charges, and service charges, and community tax charges for way too long. Let our voices be heard. "I am cheap", why pay for wi-fi?! I spent my week's savings for your fancy coffee! Other than nutmeg, and milk, and water I want my wi-fi and I want it free(can we have it now?)!