I’ve been shopping at Multiply’s Discounted Deals microsite for a couple of weeks now after getting an email alert that they’re offering Php3,000 off of regular priced items.
The Multiply Shop is like a deals site where they offer percentage discount or flat price offers. So far, what I’ve been using is the Php3,000 off discount voucher.
The first time I discovered it was back in December 17 when they placed a Php3,000 discount against a Cnaon S110 which is selling for Php16k+. Paid via Paypal the net amount of Php13k+ but turns out there was a delay as the payment was flagged as pending. After a quick tweet to the folks from @shopatmuliply, I got a call and had my order processed for delivery.
Relieved that I’m getting the S110 at a really good deal, I went back with my team to find more good deals with the Php3,000 discount.
Here’s what we found:
Php14,499 for a 16GB iPad Mini (that’s Php1,500 off the SRP)
Php11,000 for the 32GB Nexus 7 (that’s Php3,000 off the retail price)
Php10,500 for the 32GB iPod Touch (I bought mine for Php16k over a month ago)
Despite the formation of specialized anti-trafficking units, special teams of prosecutors and investigators, and the passage of an anti-trafficking law a decade ago, human trafficking continues to be “carried out with impunity” in the country, says Joy Ngozi Ezeilo,United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
In fact, Ezeilo reports that despite all the resources and attention the government claims to have given to the problem, there have only been two convictions related to human trafficking in the country.
Ezeilo had visited the Philippines in November this year as part of her mission to investigate the problem of human trafficking and assess the efforts by governments to curb the problem.
After her visit here, Ezeilo observed that the Philippines has undoubtedly become a source country for human trafficking mainly due to poverty and a big demand for cheap and exploitative labor.The problem has grown to “alarming” proportions over the years, she observes.
Despite this, however, the Philippine government’s efforts to fight trafficking have been largely inadequate and the rate of prosecution of human traffickers low, Ezeilo says.
As UN Special Rapporteur, Ezeilo is tasked to respond effectively to reliable information on possible human rights violations, especially all forms and manifestations of trafficking. During her stay, Ezeilo gathered first-hand information on current legislative and institutional programs that tackle human trafficking in Manila, Cebu, and Zamboanga.
According to Ezeilo, despite the enactment of Republic Act No. 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act in 2003, government authorities still have low levels of awareness, knowledge, and skills in identifying cases of trafficking. This has resulted to uneven and layered implementation of the law at the regional and local levels. Ezeilo also noted the lack of standardized collection of statistical information that tracks the prevailing rate, forms, trends, and manifestation of human trafficking.
She however, acknowledged that the Anti-Trafficking Law has provided a forum for stakeholders to coordinate with government in monitoring human trafficking and created regional and provincial councils against trafficking.
The way Ezeilo sees it through, such efforts to prevent and combat trafficking will not be effective and sustainable so long as “the underlying social, economic, and political factors that create an environment conducive to trafficking” are addressed. Such factors include poverty, youth unemployment, gender inequality, discrimination, and gender-based violence.
At the end of her report, Ezeilo enumerates several interim recommendations that could help the government combat human trafficking.Among these are: providing training on human trafficking to state authorities and law enforcement officials; establishment of a specialized court to fast track trial of trafficking cases; in-depth research on human trafficking to develop tools and build systematic data collection; the launch of widespread campaigns to raise public awareness; and appointment of a rapporteur to coordinate all anti-trafficking initiatives.
Ezeilo, a Nigerian national, teaches at the University of Nigeria and specializes in Human Rights law. She assumed her functions as Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons in August 2008.
A full report of Ngozi’s findings in this mission will be submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council in June 2013.
IT’S NOT AS IF we ever really left; it’s just that we are back on the net after an enforced hibernation of sorts.
The PCIJ institutional blog and the main portal had been down for more than a week after Google reported the sites as among many that have reflected malware issues recently. Those of you who have tried to access the sites since December 18 were automatically redirected to a Google warning that the sites seemed to distribute malware to visitors.
After extensive review by our platform architect Markku Seguerra, the PCIJ found that the warnings were only triggered by a confluence of factors: some old software on our server, as well as some spammy IP addresses on the same IP block as our service provider.
After a lot of hard work by our platform architect over the holidays, Google finally cleared out website and removed it from the malware “bad list.”
With this clearance, the PCIJ resumes its normal web activity, with a promise to deliver more in-depth investigative reports in the coming year.
It’s clean, decent, and reasonably priced. That’s what GoHotels PH is all about. A few weeks ago, Mervin and I was in Tacloban City to cover the Christmas Festival in Palo.
I have tried the other branches of GoHotels, most recently was the GoHotelsPH Bacolod City. So more or less, I know what to expect here in their Tacloban City property.
For the previous year, Nokia was running the Windows Phone show with its line of colorful entries in the market. Now, we see HTC trying to take hold of that same market with handsets like the 8S. Did the HTC Windows Phone 8S dress to impress? Read our full review after the break.
Design and Construction
There is no denying it. After so many years of black, white and gray, you’ll feel very amazed with the design of the HTC Windows Phone 8S.
HTC has implemented the color scheme in a very different manner. The device feels very nice to hold with its tapered edges, and because of that, the device feels thinner than it should be.
There is a two-color scheme implemented on the device; the one we have here is a mixture of different shades of red and orange.
There is a reason why manufacturers opt for glass and glossy plastic rather than polycarbonate – and that is the tendency of dirt to stain the device, especially when it has a light color.
On the front you’ll find the 4-inch WVGA display that hides underneath the glass. Below you’ll find the Windows Phone buttons – back, start and search. On top you’ll find the sensors along with the colored earpiece and the HTC logo.
On the bottom of the phone, you’ll see the micro-USB port and the microphone. On the right, you’ll find the volume rocker and the two-stage camera key, which is prone to accidental presses.
On the left hand side, there is nothing to see while you’ll find the power button and the 3.5 mm headphone jack on top.
On the back, you’ll find the 5 megapixel shooter with LED flash, the HTC logo, the Beats branding and the speakers. You’ll also find the removable part of the polycarbonate body where the micro-SIM and the micro SD card should be.
Display
The Windows Phone 8S packs a 4-inch LCD display with a resolution of 480×800 pixels. The size of the screen is acceptable and easy to operate but the bezels around it make the display feel smaller.
The blacks aren’t deep, while the production of whites are somehow outstanding – as expected from an LCD display. Colors were quite unsaturated, and the viewing angles were limited.
Since the Windows Phone UI makes use of so many colors and text, the experience didn’t turn out so well.
OS, Apps and UI
The HTC Windows Phone 8S runs on, of course, Windows Phone 8. The design of the UI is very subjective as a minimalist might find the interface very appealing while others might beg to differ.
HTC barely added their stuff with the device, like the HTC hub which adds functionality as an app and as a live tile. The integration ends there and it doesn’t go as deep as other OEMs’ integration with its apps.
For all Windows Phone users, there is a reality that cannot be escaped. That is the lack of apps. Some might argue that the store can give you what you need, but apps like the YouTube app (which redirects you to the browser) makes it feel like it’s not there yet.
Multimedia and Camera
Video playback was great. The display didn’t deliver much in the UI, but once it came to playing videos – it pushed through well.
The speakers were loud and clear, and the addition of Beats Audio is a plus. Beats Audio could be a gimmick in some aspects, but it’s there and it helps in making flat tunes sound sharper.
The 5 megapixel camera on the 8S was disappointing to some extents. It did take average shots on direct sunlight, but anything less than that lacked saturation. The addition of flash messes with color fidelity, so don’t bother. It produced very soft and noisy shots as well, to describe it.
Video recording was noticeably better to an extent. 720p video was more than acceptable; it’s not bad and it’s not remarkable either.
Call Quality & Performance
We didn’t experience any dropped calls with the device. Sound was clear through the earpiece and was good through the speakers. At some instances, our voices on the other line was muffled – but this happened rarely.
There were some occasional hiccups with the 1GHz dual-core Krait processor – regardless of how Windows Phone’s UI works, the clock speed and the number of cores.
It is probably the fault of the 512MB RAM. Nevertheless, it was more than acceptable for most users.
Battery Life
We were able to get a day’s use from the 8S’ 1700 mAh battery. When we push it to the limits with gaming and consecutive syncing, you’ll get half of the expected battery life.
Conclusion
The HTC Windows Phone 8S has a lot going for it. For those that want a different experience and a design that stands out, the 8S is worth considering. However, there are some disadvantages with that choice.
It’s sure to accomplish tons of tasks, but the phone is not for the power user who pushes multimedia to further levels.
The phone has a suggested retail price of Php14,600.
HTC Windows Phone 8S specs:
4-inch S-LCD Display (480 x 800) 233ppi
1GHz dual-core Krait CPU
Adreno 305
512 RAM
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.1
4GB internal memory
up o 32GB via microSD card
5 megapixel camera (LED flash, 720p video)
Windows Phone 8
120.5 x 63 x 10.3 mm (dimensions)
113 g (weight)
Li-IOn battery 1700 mAh
