BlueMail App by BlueMail Inc.

I have had this app in my phone for a few months months now. I got it until my phone's own program crashed, and needed of an alternative until they fixed the problem. I know that Google and Outlook mail apps can handle several accounts at the same time, but I'm a bit annoyed at the over-presence of these two companies in my life .

I have downloaded and tried several mail apps with good ratings in GooglePlay, but they lasted maximum two days in my phone; basically, they didn't give me the reliability, freedom or versatility I needed.

I stumbled upon this, and this is my main Android mail handler at present. The things I like about BlueMail are:
> Handling of several accounts. In my case 5 different accounts at the same time.
> Notifications, synchronisation times, and colours assigned to each account are easy to set and customise in the settings area.
> You can decide whether you have inbox viewed unified, with any email from any account arriving there, or just select one of the accounts as main view.
> Setting each account is easy, as the app automatically does so when you introduce your accounts usernames and passwords.
> The inbox is really really simple but pleasant, and you have a clear view and a high contrast one, which is the one I use, which is great for poor-sighted people.
> In the inbox, you can slide one email to the right and get rid of it, or slide it to the left and you will be shown three options: delete, mark as read and archive.
> There is batch editing of the emails.
> You can give feedback from the app to the developers.
> You can set your signature or brief message in every single of the accounts you have in this email, easy-peasy to do.
> You can personalise the profile picture/name of each of your accounts from the app.
> You can go to settings and decide to lock the app without the need of installing any lock app.
> Many more features than I need.
> The app runs smoothly.
> No failure or mishap so far.
> Reliable and serious app.
> Free
> No adds.
> NO pop ups asking you to rate them every single day.

I would love it if this app had a desktop version. I would pay for it!
I would also love a few more customisation options, even if I had to pay for them.

I am surprised at the low number of reviews for this app! It works great for me.

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Skype for PC by Skype

I have used Skype since it first saw the light, many years ago. I have it installed in my computers and gadgets. I use it all the time. In my PC at least once a month for intercontinental chats of about 1-2 hours of length.
 
Skype for PC is one of my favourite desktop apps and I am mostly happy with it. The quality of the sound is usually very good. Nowadays, I rarely get return and delay sounds and the line rarely drops, something that happened quite often in the past. In the last year, using this app at least once a month, I have had a bad experience, just once. My main problem with the app is for voice+audio chats, as it is a pain in the butt: with frozen images or very slow movement images or very bad quality image. I don't know if it is related to my Internet carrier or not, but it is most annoying. The result is that I don't make video calls any more unless when these lasts for a minute or two. 

Skype's interface for PC is a bit outdated, not clear enough and not customer friendly enough. The home screen should clearly show the options and ask you which one you want to use: voice call, video call, written chat alone, send photo and/or doco, plus the contact list on the side bar. 

My account is totally private, only close friends and family are there, I cannot be found by name or email. Yet, sometimes I get requests of people I don't know, spammers, I guess, so I would like that scam to be out of my house and the portholes that take them there, totally locked.

I like that Skype asks me about the quality of the sound and call/video call when I finish. At least they care! I think that serves to improve the service and is specially important when I have a bad experience. 

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Skype for Android by Skype

I have had Skype in my Android gadgets for a long time, but it is just recently that started to use it for normal phone calls. In a way, Skype for android has more user-friendly interface than the PC version, is very easy to use, very use to add money, and very use to do anything, really.

I went overseas recently and my usual mobile carrier for overseas didn't have roaming. I added a bit of credit in Skype through the app and made my first call using the app. I was surprised at the great quality of the voice call and the ridiculously low money I spent on a 30 minute call. 

Skype for Android has grown on my since then, and now I have it for intercontinental calls over the phone at home. It works great every time. There is a free option in Skype that allows you to associate your home phone number with your Skype account, so when you call somebody from your Skype app, they will see just your home phone number in their screens, which is very convenient and useful for me. Of course proper verification is needed for that. This feature works just in some countries, so check if yours is included in advance.

Skype on the Go is another feature that you can use in the app. It could be great, but it is just an emergency feature for me. The good thing is you can call from your Skype add without the need of having internet but, on the other hand, you need to call an assigned local number to make the call through it. So, it is OK for an emergency, not for my normal calls. This feature works just in some countries, so check if yours is included in advance. 
 
If their fees were cheaper, I would certainly pay for my own Skype number and use the app for phone calls all the time, but I don't think the yearly fears for owning a Skype number are reasonable.

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Dolce Gusto Au (Online Store)

 

Website

Dolce Gusto Australia is the official website for this branch of the Nestle pod coffee family.

The website is very easy to navigate and to shop from. Their basket info is very clear regarding pricing of the products, shipping fees and discount you get from promotional codes or coupons, so no surprise afterwards. 

Why buying from Dolce Gusto directly? Well, they deliver to your door, that is always an incentive.  

Shopping from their website works as usual: you add products to your basket, check out, introduce your payment details, and press send. You will get an email about the order being received and other about the order being shipped. 
  
My parcel took no time to get to my place, a couple of working days, and it was well packed.

Herewith a wrap-up of my shopping experience with Dolce Gusto:

THE GOOD THINGS
+ Free shipping for orders over 75$. Otherwise, a 9$ flat fee applies.
+ The pricing for the pods boxes is the same as those in major supermarkets, but they have all the varieties available in the country, which rarely happens in the supermarkets as they tend to stock those varieties  that sell best in their area. 
+ You can find all the DG machines in the market, from the simplest to the latest release, something that you cannot find in department stores. 
+ They offer great discounts and freebies from time to time.
+ They give a 10$ voucher if you register your machine in their website. 
+ Fast dispatch.
+ Great tracking system. Australia Post directly sends you a tracking link to your posted order as soon as appears in their system, and they send emails when the item is at destination and out for delivery. 
+ Parcels are very packed really well.
+ Customer service is very friendly and diligent, and they will reply to any query you have or solve any problem with the best attitude possible and fast. 

THE SO-SO THINGS
> Some of the accessories sold in their website are pricey.
> The description of some of the accessories is missing. There are photos, but they don't reflect what you get, they are illustrative. This is misleading and a bit lazy, jeez, it doesn't cost a thing to describe a product properly. 
> They variety of coffee and tea flavours is limited if compared to those you find in the European sites. 
> The pricing of the coffee machines is higher than in stores and other other retailers. You can find a difference of 40+ bucks difference in the oldest models. 
> No PayPal payment available. 
> The use too large boxes to send your order. I mean, if you order a whole large box, great, but why sending a large box that is mostly full of... air? 

MIND
You can't order anything unless you spend at least 35 bucks.
 
SOME WISHES
I'd love to have a nicer selection of espresso cups, not the plain cups they sell now. They could easily expand the accessories section with beautiful coffety things.

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Narciso Poudreé EDP by Narciso Rodriguez

Photo courtesy of The Scent Store

Eau Poudrée is the last addition to my perfume collection. I am not usually a fan of Narciso Rodriguez Perfumes, as I find them too strong, masculine and overwhelming on me. However, I found Eau Poudrée recently when looking for a perfume to give my mum as a gift, I was provided with a sample, I tried it on myself, and ended buying a bottle for me as well.

This is a woody floral fragrance, musky, very feminine, delicate and elegant with a great dose of romanticism. The first spray is really noticeable, velvety and enveloping. Once the perfume settles in, it is really a delicate fragrance, less musky and more floral with a drop of sweetness.

The musk, Bulgarian rose, jasmine, orange blossom, and other ingredients are masterly blended and I cannot say that this perfume smells more of any of them. It really smells as if you were applying luxurious perfumed mineral make-up on your face, and the scent came clear to your nose without overwhelming it. Eau Poudrée really transports me to a world of ladies who visited luxury rest rooms in a classic Hollywood movie minus the passé feeling and very much adapted to the 21st century women.

I find this perfume good for all ages, more a day to afternoon perfume than a night or special occasion perfume. Perfect for a day date. This is also more a spring-summer fragrance than a an autumn-winter one, without being specifically for summer.

I find the longevity of the perfume medium, and the sillage also medium on me. This, of course, varies from person to person as every person's skin and skin Ph are different.

The packaging is minimal, square to square, a bit boring, nothing creative but no ostentatious or fancy either.

This is quite an expensive perfume for a mainstream perfume brand. It starts from 88 bucks the 30 ml bottle. Unlike other mainstream perfumes I have spent my money on, I haven't regretted the purchase and I spray generously my clothing and myself for my day outings.

Perfumes are something so very particular to each individual that, what is my ambrosia me might be your nausea. We tend to revolve around families of perfumes because our skins absorb the perfume in specific ways that are individual to each person. Our noses also differ in the way they absorb and process smells and scents. To me powdery feminine woody floral perfumes and lightly oriental perfumes are very much my cup of tea, so if they are yours too, you will love this perfume.

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Narciso Eau de Toilet by Narciso Rodriguez

Photo courtesy of Fragantica

Narciso Eau de Toilet, is a fresh version of Narciso For Her. However, while I find the NfH masculine, "stinky", chemical,  and dry, I find this EDT version toned down and morphed enough to ring all the bells  I want in  a perfume.

The first notes, to my nose, are a mix of very fresh green and young flowers, sweetish without being sweet, a bit acidic, and a bit berry-ish as well. Once this exhilarating coup of  freshness evaporates, you get what is the core of the perfume and what you will smell of the rest of the day - a woody floral scent with some smoky muskiness undertones. 

Narciso EDT is a sophisticated scent, but it is not classic by any means as contains cedar and vetiver, ingredients that have been traditionally used in masculine fragrances. In that regard, the perfume is feminine but not romantic, it is more mysterious than seductive, and it has a light masculine energy that is constantly challenged by the sexiness of the musk and the femininity of the the peony and Bulgarian rose. Unlike Narciso Eau Poudrée, Narciso EDT is not an EDT for everybody, so spray it on you at your nearest store and see how the fragrance evolves on your skin throughout the day. 

Narciso EDT reminds me of the original Bottega Venetta EDP, but it is way more daring  and quirky, and also more complex from first outing to settlement. If you like Bottega you'll probably like Narciso EDT. If you want a dark twist to you Bottega's, this is it!

Despite being an EDT, this fragrance has more longevity and sillage than some EDP scents I have. It lasts on me all day, on a low key, but it is clearly noticeable when I smell my wrists. 
 
I find this perfume perfect for autumn and winter, great for casual afternoon and evening outings if you want to smell good and interesting but are not overdoing your outfit or yourself. This is also a good fragrance for meetings if you apply it half an hour earlier, as you will be wearing a perfume that is feminine, assertive and mysterious at the same time, so it doesn't smell of "make love to me", but of "lets make a deal together". 

The bottle... Another square chunky bottle. Come on Narciso! Yet, in this particular case, it has a good vibe. It reminds me of those old bottles of blank ink my father used to have for his fountain pen when I was a kid. Black Ink would have been a good name for this perfume in a way it is that.  
 
Not cheap, but cheaper than other Narciso's scents, Narciso Eau de Toilet starts at 80 bucks the 30 mls bottle.

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WTF foodie moment 12: Sour Crêpe

{ I sit a a local crêperie. I am trying to choose the right crêpe for me. It's mid afternoon and I have already had lunch. I ask one of the young waitresses for her advice}

> I am struggling to chose one of your savoury or sweet crêpe, between this and this. Is the savoury one very filling?
>> Offfff courrrrrseeeeee! 

{I get that she doesn't get what I mean, as she seems to be a young visiting French girl, so I rephrase my question}

> You know, I have already had lunch, so I wouldn't have anything that is heavy on my stomach, so which one would you say is better in that regard?
>> It is up to you.

WTF?!!!!     
Since when being sour is good for any business?
Since when having airs of a princess makes you a good waitress? 
Since when treating customers as a nuisance earns the respect of any customer?

WHERE? At small crêperie in my city. 

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Pure Fiji (Online Store)

 

Pure Fiji Australia is a division of Pure Fiji, the Fijian company that sells organic body, hair and face products branded as Pure Fiji, Reniu and Dilo. I am fan of their organic coconut oil infused body scrubs, oils (best for my skin), their facial scrub and some of their facial serums.

Their website is easy to navigate, pretty-looking and clean to the eye. They have all the info about shipping clearly available and visible. They work as most online stores do: You add things to your basket, check out, ad shipping fees, pay using your preferred method, place your order and then you receive an email about your order being placed and another email when your parcel has been dispatched.

You can pay with credit card or PayPal, the latter being always my favourite, because if you have any problem PayPal will back your claim. You can  track your order online if you are registered. However, it took my parcel barely two days from shipping to delivery, I think because they send the products via one of the real shops selling in the same city not a warehouse. 
  
They sent this through a courier company so I got the parcel in the evening. So need of tracking whatsoever.

Shipping is a flat 7.50 bucks for Australian capital cities and 9.50 for regional Australia. Cheaper if you buy in bulk.

THE DOWNSIDES
> Some of the products I ordered were not in stock, even though they showed as available when I added them to my basket. Two days after placing my order, I received an email saying that one or several of the products in my order were not available, and that they will send the parcel when they were. No details about product non available or when this would be back in stock. I sorted out things with their customer service by email in two emails, as they replaced the missing product with another and the parcel was dispatched immediately. But hey, I expect any online store to clearly mark those products that are out of stock before I add them to my basket.
> The same products cost way cheaper in their Fiji or NZ websites, which sucks. You cannot use those websites because you are immediately redirected to the Australian one. You are stock with your local division even if you pay more for the same product. 

MIND
If you live in the UK, USA or Australia you are stock with your regional website, and cannot order from  any of the others even though the products are the same and the company is the same. 

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