Yesterday, Directv called and offered what seemed to be a huge deal. I’ll spare you the details but suffice to say, I managed to procure the NFL Sunday Ticket, their premium channel lineups (everything) for the low, low price of plus $6.00/month to my existing bill. What the …?

I signed up immediately.

Unsure if I’d actually landed a deal, I called two days later to check on the status of the order. A customer service rep named “Adam” confirmed the details and confirmed the price. All was good. Furthermore, when I tried to sign up for the Super Fan package (which provides HD games and the RedZone) Adam said, “You’re gonna like this…” and went on to explain Directv received so many complaints from customers saying the extra $100 for the NFL Sunday Ticket in HD was a rip-off (my words), they did away with it, now the entire package is one price. So, recapping, I get to enjoy not only the entire NFL season in HD, but also can enjoy all the premium channels as well for the next 5-months. Fair warning, if you forget to cancel the package, you’ll automatically continue with the premium package at a premium price so put that date in your phone and stay on it. Now I just need to repair/replace my receiver so I can enjoy the movies and sports action in full surround sound. One step at a time…

So I did. It was more to see just how well Blizzard put this game together. Why? Because I want to see what resources they poured into this proejct, and by proxy, will assume the same for Diablo III. Blizzard is saying Diablo III won’t be released this year. Yeah, no shit. But this game, the fabulous sound, the enigmatic cut scenes, and the rock solid voice-acting, and the silky-smooth interface are reasons to take a look. I only hope they put as much time, effort, and focus on Diablo III.

Man, I’m such a freakin’ game geek…

The guy’s reaction is too good! Well done, Directv. Excellent marketing team responsible for dis. I has it, too.

I assumed this issues would be resolved with the iPhone 4. I was decidedly wrong. If anything, the frequency of problems has increased to an annoying degree. My bottom line: The iPhone 4 isn’t worth getting married to AT&T for another two years. No chance.

So, I’m currently rockin’ my old 3G (but won’t update to the iOS 4.0+). I’m going to sit on the sidelines, free of any contract from AT&T, pay on a monthly basis and watch the market. The Internet is buzzing about other iPhone carriers so that is where I’m going to focus my attention. I may give the Verizon Droid HTC Incredible a spin but aren’t sure. Rumor has it T-Mobile may get the iPhone before Verizon? We’ll see. Verizon iPhone in January next year? Possibly but I’m not holding my breath.

Apple has also said it will accept returns from iPhone 4 owners who don’t want their phone any longer. This situation and that offer represent a unique confluence in the smart phone market — something that provides an unusual “out” of a standard two-year contract. Since owning the iPhone 4, I’ve encountered a few dropped calls, calls going directly to voice mail, and weak signal strength. I do enjoy the capability of the phone as a device but when I need it to access the Internet or actually use it as a phone, I sometimes run into issues.

Thus, I would describe myself as someone who is seriously looking to jump ship and leave the Apple camp. With this purchase and subsequent offered return, owners of the iPhone 4 can stroll back into an Apple store, return the phone and opt-out of the two-year AT&T contract with little hassle and certainly no early termination fee. That is something to ponder if you, like myself, are considering a move to an HTC Android.

I found the international game of football (soccer) to be ponderous and cumbersome. I realized, with some pain, that a single referee cannot arbitrate the entire pitch and is forced to make calls up to 40 yards away — many of them bad. I saw players dramatically exaggerating injures to earn possession or an opportunity to have a crack at goal. I witnesses sideline referees miss call after call regarding on-side, a critical component of the game. And sadly, I saw the ball cross the line in the England v. Germany game but it wasn’t called a goal. And FIFA continues to refuse to use any technology to assist in making those difficult calls.

I contrast soccer to other sports and conclude something is missing. In an NFL football game there are seven refs and replay technology for critical calls. In a baseball game you find four umpires with video tech for home runs. In basketball, there are three refs with access to technology for final shots. Hell, even in tennis, a playing surface roughly 10 times smaller than a soccer pitch, you have six officials (at every game) plus service technology for balls in and out.

In all cases, the purpose of these officials is to ensure the game is settled on the playing surface, not based upon a “controversial” call by the referee. FIFA needs to shed the bonds of history and tradition, and focus upon actually cleaning up the game to ensure the players determine the outcome.

I purchased my iPhone 4 around 3pm local time. The sales rep “activated” the phone using a Mac in the store, then told me there were some issues with phone activation but it shouldn’t be much of an issue. I left the store with my old iPhone 3G still working and my new iPhone 4 without service.

About 20 minutes after leaving the store, my old iPhone 3G lost service. I figured, “Ah, the network is transitioning from the old to the new phone.” However, three hours later, still no service on either phone. I was in the proverbial cone of silence!

I searched online and found some tweets from other people saying they had no service either. I noted one particular tweet from hwatkins which suggested people without service should call AT&T at 866-895-1099. I called.

I spoke with Lisa, a nice gal who, after 25 minutes of researching, said she could not find any issues and passed me to tech support. Tech support specialist Jennifer went right to the heart of the issue and had me remove the SIM card from the right side of the phone and read that SIM number to her. She asked me to replace the SIM card back in the phone. As soon as I did, the phone activated and I was back in business.  She claimed not to have done anything with the network but simply reinserting the SIM was the fix.

One small note: Jennifer asked me to use the SIM removal tool which, “should have come in the box.” I looked but found no tool She recommended any narrow tipped device and suggested a paper clip. I used the paper clip but it was tedious and not exactly simple. Use the paper clip at your own risk.

The World Series? Uh, that isn’t against the world, it is against other U.S. baseball teams. Superbowl champions are world champions? Um, nope. Again, same issue. But to win the World Cup in soccer means something that all countries respect — too bad most U.S. folk don’t understand or appreciate the nuances of this game.

Truth be told, I’m a football (NFL) fan. However, if you forced me into a corner and made me decide between the Superbowl or any World Cup qualifying round, I would take soccer in a heartbeat. It isn’t even close. Strange, that. Must be my upbringing.

So, its time for the lads of England to return to their former glory and get the job done. They look to make it out of group play, into the quarterfinals. I can only hope their penalty kicks won’t let them down again. Fingers crossed and go get them, lads. For Queen and county!