Our Amazon Overlords

Thanksgiving Season? Nah, it’s time to shop. I have my eye on a Canon VIXIA HF R800 (Richard and Emily are constantly asking me what I want for ek’smas and I seldom have a good answer so I mostly tell them underwear- you can never have enough) which has incredible specs and is rated a best buy by many ($200). It might be a replacement for my Nikon Coolpix S9700 that has suffered some cosmetic damage and who knows what else, I’ve had it for about 4 years. They don’t sell it anymore and the current version would cost over $400 for not much improvement.

The main problem I have with the Nikon is the internal file system equates to about 2 Gigabytes max (32 Bit) which is fine for stills but a mere 24 minutes of video at a clip so when I film one of my Aunty Mame’s productions I have to scramble scene by scene and assemble it later.

The VIXIA HF R800 will do battery life (2 Hours) at a pop, has about the same resolution, slightly better optical zoom, and is also almost as small- 4.6 x 2.1 x 2.3 inches. It has an external Mic input (not to have one is a huge drawback for videography) and a standard Canon 43mm filter mount. So I requested $50 in extras (Filters, Macro and Wide Angle lenses). I have most of the other stuff (Tripod, U3 Memory, Cases) in stock. I also have serious portable batteries designed for pads and phones, 2.2 and 2.5 Amp (not milli, I could probably start a car if I had the right adapters) so if I rotate judiciously I estimate that with a spare ($16) I might operate for at least 8 hours without a wall socket.

It also takes stills. Cool huh?

Additionally I want 24 Eyeglass bags for keeping it all safe from scratches, which is about 18 more than I need but the marginal cost is $2. They’ll get used.

So I don’t really have any problem with Amazon other than political, they’re a horrible employer, have devastated the brick and mortar retail job market, and Jeff Bezos is an asshole only redeemed (slightly) by the fact Trump hates him because Bezos is a real Billionaire and Donald a poseur.

Oh, and he owns the Washington Post since it’s chump change to him.

My attitude about HQ2 is- why? Tired of the view? True it sets up power centers in the midst of the 2 Cities most important to the business- New York (Financial/Political) and D.C. (just Political) but people already fly to see you. How powerful is that?

Me? I’d be spending waaay more than my Prime membership on shipping and I get free books, music, and videos in the bargain.

Should it be broken up? Definitely yes! I’ll miss it though.

What’s the point? Live from New York it’s Saturday Night!