HB

A long, personal journey worth having.

New Capitol Restaurant, Sibu

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gold tablecloth

I just came back from dinner with my parents! I brought my better half along, we just flew in this morning – it’s been a while since I’ve visited my mom.

new capitol restaurant

She just went through another killer bout of radiotherapy from tumors spreading to her scalp and it’s been impeding her movement and cognitive systems a little so I thought I’ll drop by and say hello.

blended ice lemon tea

My mom is usually in Singapore but my dad convinced her to come back for a 1 week sojourn to eat the chicken over here. Apparently, it’s more nutritious. 😉

raw vegetables

I was thinking about where to bring them to dinner tonight when New Capitol Restaurant came up. This is a very old establishment in Sibu – look at the display case with cognac bottles and the old school gold tablecloth!

sliced century egg

We wanted to have the signature Claypot Mutton but unfortunately it was sold out, so we ordered:

fried kampua
Fried Kampua
This is for my dear, who has eaten a lot of different incarnations of Sibu’s most popular noodles – except fried. New Capitol Restaurant does a pretty good rendition.

sweet sauce chicken
Sweet Sauce Chicken
This is quite good actually – it has cashew nuts and other goodies inside. I ate the most of this dish.

fu kui
Fu Kui Vegetable
I have no idea what this is. The New Capitol Restaurant waitresses came up with a platter of raw vegetables (see above) for us to choose from. My dad went with this one.

Tofu Soup with Oysters
It’s tofu, I ate half of my bowl just for the sake of eating it but I don’t like tofu as a general rule. It’s so funny, I just realized that I didn’t even take a photo of this dish coz I don’t like tofu! Haha!

foochow wine duck
Red Wine Sediment Duck
This is the famous Sibu Foochow cuisine condiment known as “hong zhou” – literally the remains of home made red wine. It’s slathered over a duck and deep fried. I’m not a huge fan but it tasted alright.

huai yee

The bill came up to RM 66.70 – it was cheaper than our extravagant lunch! It’s good to talk to my parents and spend time together with all my loved ones over dinner though.

red wine duck

That was worth the price of the flights back home! 🙂

Think Blue. World Championship 2013

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think blue championships

3.48 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers! That’s how much the winners of this year’s Think Blue. World Championship 2013 managed in Germany for the finals! The father and son duo drove down the designated 592 kilometer route from Berlin via Wolfsburg and Weimar to Frankfurt am Main. I’ve been to most of the cities in the route during my trip to Germany last year with Volkswagen and it’s hard to imagine such fuel efficiency but they did it!

think blue malaysia

This is the culmination of the Think Blue. regional preliminaries which our own country participated in. I wrote about the first Think Blue. – National Challenge 2013 held in Philea Resort, Malacca in Malaysia earlier this month which saw Mr Ong Ling Kern coming up top and going to Germany on an all-expenses paid trip to participate in the Think Blue. World Championship.

think blue dresden

The regional competition in Germany were different – in addition to quiz questions and fuel efficient driving challenges (which were the tasks in Malaysia too), they had challenges like building miniature energy plans for renewable energy and cooking regional dishes with locally-sourced ingredients.

mavis kitchen

I thought the last one was quite interesting! It’s a concept that’s taking hold in a lots of places, like Byron Bay in Australia. In addition to the surfer culture there, there’s a lot of emphasis on low-food-miles and locally-sourced produce. The menus at the best restaurants like Mavis’ Kitchen (gotta remember to write about that) has large gardens and only cooks with ingredients that are in season and from surrounding orchards and farms!

think blue world championships

I thought that was a really good concept for the environment – very in line with Volkswagen’s Think Blue. philosophy which is a holistic approach to foster environmentally compatible mobility and sustainable individual action by raising awareness about sustainability and eco-conscious behavior.

think blue contestants

Back to the Think Blue. World Championship 2013 in Germany, the results on 12th September goes to Volker Muller-Tonnissen (52) and his co-driver Jorn-Luca Muller-Tonnissen (16) who is also his son! They averaged a mere 3.48 litres per 100 kilometres on the 592 kilometre route using the new Golf TDI BlueMotion. What’s more impressive was the set-up – each car competed with three occupants plus balance weight so it’s a full load! Each vehicle has a load of exactly 294.4 kilos so no one has an unfair advantage from size and built over distance (due to the balance weight).

winners tb

The most efficient performance driving father-son duo were also the winners of the German national preliminary contest. There were also 16 other national winners competing (including our very own Mr. Ong Lin Kern from Malaysia) and the second place went to the team from the Canary Islands (3.63 liters) and third was snagged by Russia (3.67 liters).

malaysia results

Mr Ong’s team representing Malaysia came in at 13th for an average consumption of 4.08 liters per 100 kilometers.

united states team

That’s not too bad considering they came in ahead of teams from Argentina and the United States (which came in at last at 17th with 4.57 liters/100 km).

think blue volkswagen

All the participants visited the International Motor Show in Frankfurt am Main after the event, where Volkswagen had a stand showcasing several efficiency models. They also got a very unique experience at the Volkswagen test centre in Ehra-Lessien where cars like the diesel-powered Golf TDI BlueMotion, the natural gas powered eco-up! and full hybrids like the Touareg Hybrid were shown. To cap it all off, they are among the first ever drivers to get the opportunity to test drive the Volkswagen XL1 (the highly anticipated most efficient series vehicle in the world) as well as the first purely electric high volume production Volkswagen – the new e-up!

e up

This is the third year of the Think Blue. World Championship and Head of Marketing at the Volkswagen Group quoted that they almost doubled the number of participating countries and motivated several thousand people from around the world to find out about driving efficiently. It’s the perfect embodiment of the Think Blue. philosophy which aims to inspire people and contribute to significantly reducing fuel consumption and emissions by adopting a more intelligent driving style.

malaysian team

Find out more about Think Blue.

GAB Oktoberfest Malaysia 2013!

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Oktoberfest Malaysia Germany

Oktoberfest is kicking off this year with celebrations throughout the month of October! I’ve always hit a couple each year to get the limited edition beer mug. I have one from every year gracing my shelves – some are even unopened and still in the box! I’m also keen to drink the Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier, brewed exclusively for the Oktoberfest season!

Oktoberfest Malaysia Beer Mug

The 2013 1 liter Oktoberfest Mug is ceramic and comes with a limited edition metal lid. It’s the first time this is done and it’s more in line with the Oktoberfest celebrations in Germany! The metal lid is originally a device to keep flies out of your brew! 🙂

Oktoberfest Malaysia Mug

I’m keen to add this to my collection of GAB Oktoberfest beer mugs – the 2010 edition even has the outlet printed on the beer mug, which makes it all the more collectible.

Interesting fact: All Oktoberfest beers must be brewed within the city limits of Munich and conform to the Reinheitsgebot (Bavarian Purity Law) which limits the ingredients which can be used.

Oktoberfest Malaysia Paulaner

I’ve had the Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier before and this isn’t something that can be had throughout the year. This is a brew that’s specially made for Oktoberfest and it weighs in at 6% alcohol – slightly higher than the usual beers which comes in around the 5% alcohol point.

Oktoberfest Malaysia Paulaner Bier

Paulaner is usually known for their wheat beers but unlike the rest of the range of Paulaner beers, the Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier is a lager! It’s very good too, and I like the fact that it can only be had during the Oktoberfest season.

Oktoberfest Malaysia Beer

The main Oktoberfest celebrations in Munich, Germany is a huge one and beer breweries have tents to provide a different drinking experience. Paulaner is famous for three of their tents:

Armbrustschutzenzelt – This derives from the word “armbrust” (crossbow) and this tent has been providing a large crossbow shooting range for more than 110 years!

Kafer’s Wies’n-Schanke – This tent serves signature gourmet food like “Kafer-Duck” and a roast saddle of venison.

Winzerer Fahndl – This tent is home to the iconic tower with a gigantic mug of Paulaner sitting on top of it and has the celebrated oompah band called “Nockherberger” playing some tunes while you drink!

Oktoberfest Malaysia McDonalds

I’ve been to Germany before and love the fact that all their beers has to conform to the German Purity Law, even the ones in McDonald’s! Yup, the McDonald’s in Germany serves beer!

Oktoberfest Malaysia 2013 Mug

Even though the Oktoberfest celebrations in Malaysia won’t be physically as big as the main Oktoberfest celebration in Munich, it’s quickly catching up with lots of good food from around the world, exciting contests, fun activities and promotions on GAB’s selection of award-winning beers like Tiger, Guinness, Heineken and of course, the official Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier.

Oktoberfest Malaysia Food

I’m personally looking forward to the authentic limited edition 1 litre ceramic Oktoberfest 2013 mug with a metal lid! You have to reserve yours in advance to avoid missing out, so check out all the fun themed parties going on around Malaysia at the Oktoberfest Malaysia Facebook Page!

Homemade Creamy Broccoli Pesto with Pasta

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homemade creamy broccoli pesto

My better half wanted to make pesto – in particular, a creamy pesto with broccoli. I told her pesto needs to have pine nuts, Parmesan cheese and basil leaves for it to be properly called pesto but she showed me a recipe and talked me out of using the nuts. I won out on the cheese and basil though – we actually have a nice herb garden with basil leaves.

broccoli florets

…so that’s what we did over the weekend. I must say it’s quite a success, although this isn’t a traditional pesto with pine nuts but more like a creamy broccoli sauce.

This is actually from a recipe that we adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

steamed broccoli heads

There’s a head of broccoli that’s starting to turn yellow so we steamed that for about 10 minutes and cut the crown into florets. I chopped the stem almost down to the head. I *did not* use the stems at all, some recipes call for that, I only use the broccoli florets.

ingredients broccoli pesto

This is what we put into the food processor:

  • 1 small broccoli
  • 2 cloves raw garlic
  • 50 ml heavy thickened cream
  • 3 heaped tablespoons of Greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Basil leaves
  • Salt and pepper to taste

I would say the most important thing in that creamy broccoli pesto sauce is the garlic. It’s no good without the garlic! I almost forgot to put it in.

adding fresh basil

Our herb garden is just starting to flower so we just picked a few fresh basil leaves to throw inside the food processor. I pulsed everything and processed it for about 30 seconds until all the ingredients were meshed well together.

cooking linguine

This is our first attempt in doing this so we just cooked some linguine and tossed it with our home-made creamy broccoli pesto.

The linguine was mixed with a huge chunk of butter. I reckon that since there’s olive oil in the pesto sauce, the pasta would taste better with butter. It did! We also had a simple poached egg with the pasta dish.

creamy broccoli pesto

It tasted really good! The heavy cream combined with the Greek yogurt makes a very nice base for the interesting textural experience of having millions of tiny broccoli florets rubbing against your tongue with every bite. The creamy pesto paste isn’t too heavy and rich either – we were surprised to find out it’s actually very light.

creamy broccoli pesto pasta

It’s not a traditional pesto but I’m keen to do one next time with our own basil leaves and some toasted pine nuts. As for this creamy broccoli pesto, it’s simple and delicious, a wonderful alternative to the heavier pasta sauces we’ve been using lately!

I’m wearing Hoya BlueControl lens!

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Check it!

eye test

I bet you didn’t know I have problems with my eyesight. I have shortsightedness of -2.50 on my right eye with astigmatism of -1.25. No, I don’t wear spectacles. I’ve never done any form of vision correction surgery. I don’t wear contacts either. It has constantly been puzzling people how I can function visually.

aud hb

It’s coz I’m heavily left eye dominant and my left eye has close to perfect vision. However, I do experience a lot of eye fatigue and dry eyes especially since I’m in front of a notebook almost 16 hours a day! The worst thing is, I didn’t even realize the eye irritation and general fatigue until I started wearing my new ByWP frames with Hoya BlueControl lens.

Tips & Tricks for Healthy Eyes #1: Staring at your screen for too long will cause your eyes to water. Remember to blink!

I’ve already known about the -2.50 myopia and -1.25 astigmatism on my right eye. I just came up during an eye test when I was a kid and my mom forced me to wear specs when I was 12 years old. I didn’t want to coz they made me very dizzy so I stopped wearing them after less than 3 days.

Fast forward 19 years later (yes, I’m 31) and I decided to drop in to get my eyes checked. I’m a heavy user of digital media – I’m on computers most of the day! I decided that having BlueControl lens will help me in my eye troubles.

prescription lens

I was torn between the Reykjavik Eyes MR 12 (RM 1,100) which is a frame made out of a solid piece of titanium so is just a single piece and the ByWP BY11031MB (RM 1,280) which is handmade with stainless steel in Germany and uses a hinge instead of screws on the side and finally went with the latter after viewing it through one of their machines which photographs you with different lenses so you can choose what looks best.

frames camera

It came back in just a few days. The Hoya BlueControl lens actually has a bluish-purple coating on it that can be seen at an angle. I thought that was really cool. I have worn it for a week and I’m glad I finally went in to get my vision fixed. The Hoya BlueControl lens works very well if you’re a heavy user of digital media. I’m probably the one of the heaviest digital media users around!

Tips & Tricks for Healthy Eyes #2: Take regular breaks! Looking away from your screen at something green for 20 seconds every 20 minutes will make a *huge* difference.

BlueControl is actually an anti-reflection coating that reflects part of the harmful blue light emitted by flat screen displays, indoor energy savings lights and sunlight. I am exposed to either of the three during my 16 wakeful hours per day. Blue light is also known as High Energy Visible (HEV) light and comes from the blue end of the visible spectrum.

reykjavik eyes

It’s known as the strongest light as blue light passes through the cornea and crystalline lens directly into the retina. I have LCD and LED computer and television screens, smartphones, tablets and GPS devices. I didn’t realize how tired my eyes were before wearing the BlueControl lens. It’s one of those things that you realize in hindsight.

old team

It’s a “Hey! I’ve been missing out on all this comfort!” moment.

hoya bluecontrol

It not only neutralizes the harmful blue light from the digital media world we are in now but also reduces glare. I found out that wearing my ByWP frames with the Hoya BlueControl lens makes me *a lot* more comfortable. It requires a double affirmation technical grammatical error coz I feel wonderful now when I’m in front of the notebook.

ByWP-BY11031MB

It’s the small things that you notice – chatting in Whatsapp on your smartphone doesn’t fatigue or strain your eyes too much. Watching movies on the LCD screen doesn’t make your eyes dry. I found out that it actually helps regulate sleep too! I’m always up late and staring at the notebook and the excessive blue light can cause sleeplessness.

blue control

Tips & Tricks for Healthy Eyes #3: Keep your distance!

There really is something to this BlueControl lens. It’s like the movie Hackers where the main character Zero Cool wears shades to cut what he calls “razor burn” (more like CRT glare). This has actually come to effect with the LCD and LED screens of computers and smartphones today

rach vanda hb

Wearing my BlueControl lens makes me feel much more comfortable with none of the eye fatigue I have actually *gotten used to*.

bluecontrol

It’s the best RM 600 I spent! Those are for the ByWP frames, the BlueControl lens are kindly furnished by Hoya for review. You can’t change the digital media world that we’re in so maybe these lens would help you too. Get more tips & tricks on healthier eyes at the BlueControl website.

Cars, travel and banking tips!

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old cars

I was looking at the various cars that evolved throughout the history of automobiles in Germany last year. It was quite interesting, they have a car museum in Wolfsburg that a lot of enthusiasts go visit. There is a car museum with old cars dating from the early 1900’s to the latest offerings by luxury car manufacturers like Bugatti.

germany

It was my third time visiting Europe. The question I also get a lot is how I can get to travel so much. I also went back to Melbourne earlier this year, where I spent my college and university years and it’s all about savings!

(and a few travel tips and tricks)

mini cooper s miniature

RHB Bank is celebrating it’s 100th year by giving away 2 Mini Cooper S Coupe and other attractive prizes. On top of that, the first 300 eligible participants to do so will walk away with a Mini Cooper S Miniature!

Step 1: Open a new RHB Bank Current Account/Savings Account or RHB Islamic Mudharabah Current/Savings Account-i with a minimum deposit of RM 500.

Step 2: Send them a text message at 36266 with the content “MINI Account number” (remove quotation marks e.g. MINI 12345678901234

That’s all there is to it!

I personally have an RHB Bank Savings Account that ties in to a RHB Bank Debit Cash-Connect Mastercard that gives me 0.5% unlimited cashback on all my purchases.

bangkok

This suits my needs as I travel a lot and I wrote a post once about how I used the debit card as a way to control spending when I traveled to Bangkok earlier this year. I like the 0.5% cashback too!

Travel Tip: I always keep an eye on the foreign exchange so that I can buy key currencies (USD, Euro and Australian Dollar) when they’re at a low point. This helps a lot when you travel!

However, if you’re a college student just starting out, your saving needs will be different so you’ll want a different Current/Savings Account that most suits your lifestyle.

police

Back in the days, people just stored their money at home but that’s a really idiotic thing to do. My grandma’s house got broken into and over RM 30,000 was taken from her alone – and that’s just from the ang pow money she gets. It just illustrates that when you have a large amount (or even a small amount) of cash, the best place to put it is in the bank – use a Cash Deposit machine if the bank isn’t open.

germany tram

The awesome thing about the RHB Let’s Save Miniature Giveaway Campaign is that any account from RHB Bank and Mudharabah accounts from RHB Islamic Banking will be eligible for the 300 MINI Cooper S miniatures. There will be 150 units for RHB Bank and 150 units for RHB Islamic Banking and the first 300 people to open a Current/Savings Account will get these very collectible miniatures!

Tip: You can always open a new account at RHB if you find the old offerings at your current bank is not keeping up with your lifestyle now. That’s another thing I do – the Current/Savings account I had when I was a college student is out-of-tune with my current needs so I open new ones as I go through life. Banks like RHB has different accounts based on what your aims and desires are at any stage of life.

germany cafe

It’s open to all new sign-ups so you just need to be 18 years old and open a new RHB Bank Current/Savings account and deposit RM 500 inside. Remember to send the text message if you want the cool MINI miniature! This campaign runs from 15th September – 15th November so hurry up and open one now so you can get a MINI collectible of your own! Find out more *here*. 🙂

I Plant A Tree in Ulu Segama, Sabah!

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sabah islands

This is what people usually think about when they think of Sabah! Azure waters for diving, white beaches for sunbathing…

mt kinabalu

…and of course Mt. Kinabalu! I climbed to the summit of Mt. Kinabalu in 2005. It’s a beautiful place and the trek towards the summit is filled with all sorts of flora and fauna.

mt kinabalu peak

However, all this is only possible through conservation and keeping nature pristine. Sabah is doing a lot towards eco-tourism and a lot of their recent efforts is helping environmental causes e.g. banning the trade of shark’s fin.

plant tree

I’m all for doing something for Mother Nature! I’ve been involved in tree planting campaigns before and I think it’s a wonderful way to give back to the Earth!

Every tree planted will help contribute to the environment by reducing greenhouse gases and producing more oxygen and that’s always a good thing in our fast expanding industrial modernization efforts.

senq plant tree

That’s what Sabah has to offer – lots of nature – and senQ Digital Station is doing a wonderful thing to keep it that way via their I Plant A Tree campaign.

Basically, senQ Digital Station is going to plant a tree to help conserve the environment in their brand new Eco campaign. For every pair inverter air-conditioners sold at any Senheng or senQ Digital station all over Malaysia, one tree will be planted in North Ulu Segama, Sabah!

I think that’s a wonderful thing to do since each tree will help offset our carbon emissions.

facebook contest

To top it off, senQ Digital Station is running a Facebook contest where you can win a trip to Ulu Segama, Sabah to actually plant a tree with your own hands! I can’t tell you how fulfilling that is! 🙂

The Facebook contest is very fair too:

i plant tree

That’s all you need for a chance to win! It’s *not* another popularity contest so you don’t have to ask for “Likes”. All you need to do is to share that I Plant A Tree poster five (5) times throughout the contest period and you’ll get a chance to win that trip! The winners will be chosen randomly so everyone has an equal chance of winning.

6 winners will be selected from all the people who have met the contest requirements (sharing the poster 5 times) and the winners will experience an amazing vacation package to Ulu Segama in Sabah in the final phase of the I Plant A Tree campaign with other invited guests.

facebook plant tree

I’ve already shared the poster on my timeline.

plant trees

Go do your part by sharing the I Plant A Tree poster on your Facebook timeline now and you could win the trip to Sabah to do it for real! 😀

Summer truffles, our own garden and chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwiches!

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tuber aestivum

This is what I got my better half for our anniversary! It’s summer truffles or Tuber aestivum. It’s not as good as white truffles or black truffles but it’s something I can afford without breaking the bank – a small chunk of Perigord black truffle the size of a snail can cost RM 2,000 – if you can find it!

white truffle aroma

I’ve never found truffles for sale here. I’ve seen olive oil infused with white truffle flavor (which usually costs around RM 100 for 200 ml) but that’s a very different thing. White truffle flavor isn’t white truffle, it’s synthetic, but it’ll make a good condiment (some people call it the mediocre chef’s crutch ;)). It tastes good and that’s what you get when you order thick cut truffle fries.

black truffle aroma

But there are actually no real truffles inside that bottle of olive oil. It’s just chemicals for flavor. One step up would be the 1% truffle oil infusions where you do get a few small shavings of truffles (equivalent to 5% fresh truffle) but is also rounded up with artificial truffle flavor and aroma.

truffle oil

This would usually set you back around RM 200 or so for a 200 ml bottle. I wanted to get this one actually since it has that distinctive truffle aroma I wanted my dear to taste.

However, I saw real summer truffles from Italy! It’s just 35 grams (50 grams if you include the water) and it comes in a tiny bottle that I thought would be perfect for a present!

summer truffles

I’ve wanted to get her some truffles since she’s never had them before. This is just about what I can afford right about now and I thought it’s nice to get real truffles for that price!

herb garden

My dear got me this! It’s a living garden – or rather a herb garden that she made and stuck with all sorts of notes. I love it!

(and also a toothbrush and hand washing liquid – she has a very practical side that I love)

I’ve been taking care of it ever since! I water it a little every day and give it some sun (recently started putting it outside at night so it’ll get some dew too). I thought it’s a perfect present, she’s always so thoughtful. We can now harvest our own herbs from our own garden! 😀

pandora autumn 2013

I also got her a Pandora charm from the new Autumn 2013 collection.

pandora charm

I thought this one was quite relevant and she said something that I felt quite happy about – the charm bracelet has our own story! I’m glad she liked it.

food processor

I also made dinner for her (more about that soon). It was a working day so I had to rush here and there, running about like a madman trying to get everything I needed.

cookie ice cream

It was a very nice anniversary that we rounded up with a nice chocolate chip cookie sandwich filled with ice cream from Good Humor.

hb ling 7th

I’m glad to have her in my life, it has brightened it much and I’m all the better for that! <3 pandora 2013

I love you dear! *hugs my dear*

Old is gold? Not(e) in this case.

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alienware

I’ve always wanted an faster notebook. I use my notebook for gaming as well as work so it’s an essential piece of equipment for me. As someone wise quipped – There’s no such thing as being too rich, too thin, or too fast. 😉

club med bali

I went on a trip to Club Med Bali recently and a friend on the flight had a very slim notebook. It’s ultra portable and light – I can hold it for hours with one hand and feel no strain at all. My old notebook on the other hand weighs over 2 kgs and is so big that there’s hardly enough space for it on the tray in the airplane!

It makes me really want to get a new ultralight notebook just so I:

a) Don’t exceed the 7kg carry-on baggage limit
b) Won’t get hernia from pulling it out of my laptop bag

It’s not only bulky and space consuming but it goes through the battery like a hot knife though butter. I can barely get 2 hours worth of work done before I get a low battery warning while the new notebooks out in the market can run for 3 times as long, giving you much more time to work.

I’m rather excited at the new touch screen notebooks too – it’s like a notebook and tablet combined into one…literally. Most of the new models are detachable, so you can use it like a tablet outside and a notebook when you have more space in the office or at home.

mobile lifestyle

Convertible Ultrabook = yum!

It’s the best of both worlds PLUS you can have a touch screen to play with. My niece can’t even play with my notebook coz she expects the screen to be interactive while it’s actually an old conventional LCD screen.

You can always get a lot of work done faster by having a faster notebook – you’ll be surprised at how much time you can save from something like booting up your notebook. If you’re using an old clunker that takes 5 minutes to go to the Start screen from the time you pressed the power button each day…

…you’re wasting 2 1/2 hours a month!

Imagine what you can do with that time – catch a full length movie, have a nice full-course dinner, do chores around the house, and even drive to the beach at Goldcoast Sepang *and* back!

motherboard

I’ll like to do a PC Refresh on my home box too but in that I’ll use the best of the best and it’ll likely end up more than the notebook with dual graphic cards and the fastest Intel desktop chip – the Intel Core Extreme i7-3970X which goes up to 4.00 Ghz with Turbo Boost and has 15 MB of cache! That’s tech-speak for the fastest processor in the world right now! 😀

Why is fast important?

Well, you get to use the extra time you’ll have spent watching loading screens to do something productive instead of sitting there and twiddling your thumbs.

silvermont

I’ve seen new tablets coming out that has ever faster web browsing, email, HDR photos and videos, and YouTube and Facebook activity – basically everything you’ll use a tablet for. Going back to time, if you take an average of 3 seconds to load each of the applications above and you open each an average of 10 times a day, that’s 750 seconds or…

12 1/2 minutes a day!

You can get a lot of things done in that time.

intel fact sheet

The idea here is to make your device work hard so you don’t have to!

Refreshing your PC also allows you to stay up to date in the fast paced IT environment today and have longer battery life with smarter multitasking with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology.

Time also translates to cost – I don’t even know how to update my blog if I’m still using the first PC I had – the 486DX2-66Mhz. 😉

vespa contest

You can buy a PC today and win a Vespa! Whenever you buy a PC powered by Intel Core processor, you stand a chance to win a Vespa LX 150 worth RM 12,000 till 31st December 2013! It’s soooo cool to be riding in a Vespa, just like Roman Holiday, the movie that made the scooter famous! Hope on over to Intel Generation Today to find out more about the contest!

Interesting fact: The makers of Vespa used to make fighter planes in World War II. Due to the restrictions in manufacturing aircraft after the war (Italy was with the Axis powers) they made scooters instead and the Vespa was born!

BISON Savanna Launch – Drive Beyond Borders

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lion dance

Every good launch needs a lion dance.

Check out the awesome lion dance video above! I filmed that at the flagship showroom opening and official launch of BISON Savanna. I arrived quite early and caught sight of the lion dance troupe preparing to do their thing so I followed them into the garage.

bison lion dance

This is the new flagship showroom of BISON and the lion dance troupe was at the back – doing a private ceremonial dance before the event started.

ribbon cutting

BISON Savanna was officially launched at the Angka-Tan Motor Sdn Bhd flagship showroom at Jalan 225, Petaling Jaya on the 11th September 2013. The showroom itself is the first dedicated BISON showroom in Malaysia and has a layout of 12,000 square feet.

bison showroom

The BISON Savanna is quite an interesting pickup – it’s manufactured by the Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd. – which is one of the largest commercial vehicle manufacturers in China (which usually means the world as well). The China market for commercial vehicles is huge!

bison atm gift exchange

The collaboration between Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd. and ATM brings the world’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer to Malaysia (ATM is a subsidiary of Warisan TC Holdings Berhad) and Angka-Tan Motor Sdn Bhd will be the sole distributor of their vehicles.

bison savanna launch

Official BISON Savanna unveiling in Malaysia!

drive beyond borders

The BISON Savanna in particular is a highly anticipated vehicle in the powerful pickup truck segment. It’s packed with well-known and proven components so don’t let the Made in China label fool you.

bison

There’s a robust ISF 2.8 diesel engine designed by Cummins Engine Co. Ltd (US) and manufactured by Foton Cummins, 5-speed manual GETRAG transmission, DANA USA rear axles and BorgWarner USA 4WD transfer case with a BOSCH common rail system fuel system inside the BISON Savanna.

foton bison engine

That’s an impressive list of proven and reliable systems.

bison savanna interior

I took a look under the hood and inside the car and there’s also anti-lock braking system (ABS), electronic brake force distribution (EBD), dual air bags, and electronic tire pressure monitoring system – the last of which is usually only available in premium brands.

ride

The pickup truck has changed a lot since the last several decades and has a lot of features you’ll expect in a car like air bags and EBD/ABS. I see a lot of people from Sarawak (where I come from) using pickups as a primary vehicle instead of a car. This is from the evolution of the pickup from bare bones practicality to luxury and comfort sedan-like interiors.

lion dance orange

There’s on-board audio entertainment systems with USB, AUX, CD player and 4 speakers, power windows, overhead lighting and storage and a sporty and adjustable three-spoke steering wheel like you’ll see in a car.

Bonus video: Watch the lion dance troupe pass an orange during the BISON Savanna launch!

bison savanna dual cab

I can see why a lot of people from my hometown uses pickups like this as a primary family vehicle. I would too, considering it has sedan features in a 4WD and double cab format with 210 mm of ground clearance!

bison savanna

Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd is less known here but they’re actually one of the most successful commercial vehicle brands in the largest market right now – China. They also got into an international joint venture last year that created Beijing Foton Daimler Automotive Co. Ltd.

bison showroom opening

I really liked the BISON Savanna. The ISF 2.8 diesel engine is turbocharged and it’s very competitively priced at RM 71,888 for the 4×2 Double Cab and RM 79,888 for the 4×4 Double Cab variant (prices are OTR). The best news for people in East Malaysia is that since this is from ATM, there will be 27 designated locations nationwide under the Tan Chong Express Auto Service (TCEAS) network so you’ll have 24-hour break-down service.

Get more details!

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