This years PC Show 2012 starts from 7 to 10 June. As usual, the event will occupy level 1, 3, 4 and 6 of Suntec Singapore. The PC Show opening hours from 12 noon to 9 pm daily. Avoid the first hour of the show or else you’ll have to queue to get in.

PC Show 2012
7-10 June 2012
12 to 9pm
Suntec Singapore

Consumers flock to this IT and electronics fair to hunt for the best bargain laptops such as Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung, Toshiba, etc. and related computer hardwares and accessories.

Major camera brands such as Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic and Sony have promoted their latest compact cameras and DSLRs in previous shows and it is expected they will be present in this year’s event too. There were many new models released over the past 6 months and competitions are hotting up.

Besides computer hardware and digital cameras, the PC Show has become the “battleground” for Singtel, Starhub and M1 to gain market share for broadband subscribers. As observed over the recent years, the freebies are getting more attractive e.g. MacBook Pro for a 2-year subscription plan. Indeed, it is the best time to sign up for a new plan or recontract your broadband during the PC Show. Only the three telcos are allowed to carry Apple products i.e. iPhone and iPad at the show. These booths are not only attractions to Apple fans but also people looking for the latest Android phones from Samsung, HTC and etc.

To find out more information on The PC Show 2012, please visit http://www.pcshow2012.com

iPhone 4S will be available in Singapore on 28 October. This is the launch date posted on the official Singapore Apple Online Store web page. I reckon the local telcos, especially Singtel will be able to start sell the iPhone 4S on that date too.

You can find out more on the iPhone 4S Singapore launch date at this official Apple web page:

http://store.apple.com/sg/browse/home/shop_iphone/family/iphone

No pricing of the new iPhone 4S in Singapore dollar yet, however, I expected the price of the iPhone 4S without contract to be same as iPhone 4. SGD888 for 16GB and SGD1,048 for the 32GB model.

At the time of writing, there is no news from any of the telcos: Singtel, Starhub or M1 on their official launch date of iPhone 4S in Singapore yet. Meanwhile, we just have to wait for a few more days for the confirmed date and pricing for the iPhone 4S plans.

The IT Show 2012 will start on 8 Mar until 11 Mar at Suntec Singaproe. This is probably the largest, in term of visitors and revenue, among all the consumer electronics trade fairs in Singapore.

Last year, the 4-day IT Show attracted a massive turnout of over 80,000 visitors and chalked up over $65 million in sales

People flocked to the Singapore IT Show to look for latest gadgets such as smartphones, iPad-like tablet PC, digital cameras, portable entertainment devices. As for the staples like the laptops, netbooks, flat panel TVs and monitors, printers and etc., people come to the IT Show to look for the best bargain.

Beside major brands e.g. ACER, ASUS, Apple, Canon, Creative, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, LG, Nikon, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba, you can expect the 3 Singapore telcos: Singtel, Starhub and M1 at each other’s throats vying for more subscribers.

Hot Gadgets at the IT Show 2011

Here’s my list of hot gadgets for IT Show 2011:

• MacBook Pro
• Lumix GF2
• Olympus E-PL2 and XZ-1
• Free MacBook Air offer by telcos

Have I missed out something? Tell me what hot gadgets you are buying at the IT Show 2011. Leave your comment at the box below.

My M1 Mobile Broadband contract will expire in 2 weeks’ time and I was told there will be no more 50% discount on the price plan. That’s as good as telling me to switch to Singtel or Starhub. After some research, I decided that I will go for the Starhub MaxMobile Prepaid. And it would be 7.2Mbps data plan with the $149 $98 Starhub mobile broadband modem.

The Starhub MaxMobile Prepaid bundle promotion includes a Huawei E1750 USB modem (HSDPA 7.2Mbps/HSUPA 5.6Mbps) and Prepaid SIM card plus 2 additional $6 top-up cards and it costs only $149 $98. The Huawei E1750 USB Modem is priced at CNY800(about S$171) so I thought there must be a catch for Starhub to offer the 7.2Mbps mobile broadband prepaid bundle at such low price!

Maybe the Starhub E1750 is locked and cannot accept other service provider SIM cards.

Tested M1 Mobile Broadband SIM Card in Starhub Mobile Broadband Modem

So I set out to test my new Starhub mobile broadband modem, Huawei E1750, with my exisiting M1 Mobile Broadband SIM card which I have been using for the past 1 year in the M1′s Vodafone E220 USB Modem.

With the Vodafone E220 USB modem, all the settings were configured nicely for M1 SIM card so I have no idea how to configure it for the E1750. Luckily, after some googling I found the M1 settings at AlvinPoh.com.

Here’s the screen shots on the value to enter for the Starhub’s Huawei E1750 USB modem:

• Dial Number: *99#
• Username: ppp@aplus.at
• Password: ppp

Also, ensure that both CHAP and PAP are not selected in the Advanced settings.

Once connected, the DNS are:
- 202.65.244.31
- 202.65.247.32

The M1 mobile broadband SIM card can actually work with my new Starhub MaxMobile Prepaid modem!

Starhub MaxMobile USB Modem is Not Locked

So the Starhub E1750 USB modem is unlocked.

Confirmed.

How about Singtel Mobile Broadband?

Connection settings for Singtel Mobile Broadband:

1. Number to dial is *99#
2. DNS to use is 165.21.83.88 and 165.21.100.88
3. APN for Singtel is “internet”
4. Username =
5. Password =

Next week , when I get my hand on Singtel BBOM SIM card, I shall test it with the E1750. Or, maybe you have already tried it? Do leave your comment below.

HTC Magic will be available at M1 Shop Paragon tomorrow. Finally, the wait will be over in about 24 hours. Go grab one of the “Magic Card at the Magic Box and you might get a $0 HTC Magic deap or up to $200 off the phone purchase or more” – this phrase stood out of the full-page ad in today’s Straits Time.

I believe HTC Magic is the first Android phone offered by M1. However, I will wait for a little while to see how’s the response to the new phone. I am still keen to look at the Samsung i7500 before making the decision on my next smartphone. I think the Samsung Android phone has better specs than the HTC Magic e.g. 8GB internal memory, 3.5mm earphone jack and multitudes of video formats: MPEG4, H.263, H.264 and WMV.

HTC Magic Specifications