Tech update

Wanted to cover off two things in this post.

First just switched from Iphone 4 to 4S - been running with the new handset for just over two weeks now (incidentally got the handset free from Orange as my 23 month contract was coming to an end - should still have been a charge of over £ 100 for the phone but they gave it me free to keep me as a client and also reduced my monthly bill from £ 37 to £ 35).
I got the original 4 at launch two years ago replacing a high end Nokia (very poor as smart phones went).
From a practical standpoint there really isn't anything between the two iphones - Siri is fun for a while and I've developed some very specific use cases for it around e-mailing and browsing whilst on the move or in the car - in the current Beta version though it's of limited use to non Californians !
The only other 'visible' change is the processors speed which really does amp up the usability of not only the web brower (Safari is literally twice as fast on a wifi connection) but also simple things like loading, playing and using the swipe back functions in the music player.
Tips - couple of iphone 4S tips - first, get that old 4 straight onto Amazon - I sold mine (in not quite perfect cosmetic condition) for over £ 280 - wiping off the initial cost of the handset in the first place.
Secondly, as an avid podcast listener I've just moved over to Pocket Cast - £ 1.49 on the itunes store - at the moment I'm running it in tandem with the iphone music player but initial indications are it runs as smoothly, looks better and offers push notifications when new 'casts are available - I'm subscribed to around 40 so this is an essential feature to keep me up to date. Probably do a full review in a couple of weeks when I've really settled in to it.
On balance the 4S is a great upgrade for me - love the OS and the phone literally goes everywhere with me - should you wait for the 5 ? Nope - I'm probably going to sell my 4S prior to the launch and pay the extra £ 100 or so to upgrade - so if you budget now the cost of entry to the new iphone shouldn't hit so hard.

Second issue I wanted to cover was tablets.

I've been running an Ipad (1) since launch and frankly have no complaints at all - great device, more useful than I ever expected and still going strong - that's my problem - Mrs Localventure now has more access to it than me for evening browsing and game playing and I'm looking to pick up a second tablet for  again light computing duties - mainly browsing, media consumption and a decent e-mail client.
I can't see the cost benefit advantages of a second ipad and frankly don't need a 9.5 inch screen - 7 or 8 will do.
At the moment I'm leaning towards a neuropad2 but wondered what else was out there in the sub £ 100 market - my critieria are fairly simple - Android 4 would be nice, decent wifi connectivity and a UK power pack should be the minimum - I know for the money I'm not going to get Apple build quality or possibly longevity but like a second car I don't need to run a top level cruising machine - I'm looking at a coffee shop run around.

Any ideas ?

Amazon Scam

Just had a Nigerian criminal attempt to scam me using an Amazon item I have for sale.
Essentially they use the buyers question function to ask a legitimate question about an item you have for sale. They ask you to reply to a generic (gmail, yahoo, hotmail) address of theirs which is set up as an English sounding persons (johnsmith1960@yahoo.co.uk for example) - in my case they queried some scratches on the back of an ipod I'm selling.
I replied with a picture of the item and then the magic begins.
They now have your e-mail address so send replicated Amazon 'sold' e-mails to your e-mail account. Along with this is a mail from the questioner asking you to send it to an address in Nigeria as a surprise gift for a friend with a birthday next week. So of course they want it posted urgently.
It's a fairly transparent ruse for a number of reasons : the e-mails don't look right and are mispelt, I don't post items outside the UK anymore so couldn't have a buyer in anywhere but mainland UK, the e-mail account I used to reply is not the one I use for Amazon and lastly of course there's no payment data on my Amazon seller account.
That final item is the rub though - a lot of people might not even bother to go in and check their seller account - when you're selling a high end item a lot of sellers might just be excited to have sold it and just want to get the item straight to the post office.
So beware - check everything - these scammers will only get better at doing this - mine was pretty amateurish but even so if they send out enough question I'm sure some sellers do get caught out.

Just wanted to update the blog with current contact information.

If you want assistance with private medical insurance - I'm an FSA registered independent healthcare consultant working with individuals, families and corporates on new and existing cover.
E-Mail : philknight@pch.uk.com
Telephone : 07792 075748

I also own a marketing business working with senior doctors and enabling them to increase income stream from medico-legal work.
Website : www.medicolegalmarketing.co.uk
E. info@medicolegalmarketing.co.uk or pknight.mlm@gmail.com
T. 07792 075 748

Lastly, I'm consulting with a firm specializing in pensions auto-enrolment for pending new government pensions legislation. We're looking to work with SME's and accountants to put in place state of the art software and employee benefit flex systems.
W. www.meridianautoenrolmentsolutions.com
E. pknight.meridianae@gmail.com
T. 07792 075748

My main Twitter accounts are :

@localventure1 (this blog and my personal account)
@philknightpch (medical insurance account)
@mlm4docs (medico-legal marketing account)

Lastly, you can find me at Lindekin, here's the public profile :

http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/philip-knight/1a/b47/58b

Looking forward to doing business !