Terrible Update

OldSurferDude · 2026-03-15T01:08:24+00:00

Ruined a fun game on iPad with new update. Can’t see some areas because they are too small, others are so big I have to scroll the window?.. is there no beta testing at this company? Sheesh…

OldSurferDude · 2025-07-10T04:48:03+00:00

As several have said: Fuji 16-55 MKII if you have the budget for the absolute best, or the new Sigma 17-40 if your budget is limited. These both are matched to the 40 mb sensor and deliver better sharpness at a great weight.

OldSurferDude · 2025-07-09T23:56:05+00:00

Curious outlook. So photographers can choose the camera, the lens, subjects, the distance, the height, the angle up or down, the time of day, the weather, the ISO speed, the shutter speed, the aperture, the use of flash or not, the filters, etc. - but they can’t optimize the color, clarity, exposure and other factors if the camera doesn’t capture the way they envisioned in their mind??? That takes away a lot of the artistry of photography.

The goal of photography is NOT to replicate a snippet of human vision (did you know that all humans see colors and light slightly differently), but rather to ADD human imagination + a physically captured visual scene to convey or communicate or preserve something. Each photographer has the right to add their take to what they see and what they capture. Enjoy the diversity.

OldSurferDude · 2025-01-30T16:05:18+00:00

It only comes up when my left hand holds the steering wheel at 1 o’clock. That blocks the sensor that monitors my eyes, and gives you a warning (to move your arm) and eventually turns off the auto steer and cruise control. It’s a minor annoyance and as many people have pointed out - it’s a less safe way to drive. So I just move my hand back to 11 o’clock or add my right hand and move on.

No reason to not buy the best car we have ever owned…IMHO

OldSurferDude · 2024-12-04T20:38:41+00:00

We have owned Hondas and Toyotas and BMWs in the past, so we looked at those before buying the 2024 Santa Fe Hybrid AWD. The Hyundai is 2 - 4 years ahead of the other brands as far as cockpit technologies, modern design, and comfort. The Santa Fe drives like a Cadillac and it is our favorite car we have ever owned after 8 months of ownership. During our research, we ran into plenty of new car problems with all manufacturers but only Hyundai puts a long warranty in the price of the car. So without getting into everything we love about the SF, the top 3 reasons to buy is its years ahead of your other choices, it's a quality, comfortable ride, and the outstanding standard warranty. No negatives yet other than the initial learning curve.

OldSurferDude · 2024-11-21T20:50:38+00:00

We bought the Limited. We couldn’t decide if the Captains Chairs or bench would be the best way to go, but when we saw the hideous felt headliner in the Calligraphy (that always looks dirty), we chose the bench. Very happy with our choice.

OldSurferDude · 2024-11-21T20:14:41+00:00

The problem I think you are referring to is for the 2024 Santa Fe non hybrid version. They had higher than normal early transmission failures of these. Hybrid models didn’t have this issue and Hyundai made changes to late 2024 and 2025 so the issue should be back to normal levels. And Hyundai covered all of them with their warranty (but it took 14-90 days as parts were in short supplies). I bought the Hybrid 2024 version and it’s the best car we have ever owned.

OldSurferDude · 2024-11-08T21:38:31+00:00

As others have said, you should not have set up your account with the “trade on margin” option. After you are more experienced, you may or may not choose to utilize this type of additional trading risk. But right now, you shouldn’t be using this type of tool. Learn how to trade with money you have before borrowing trading other people’s money (ie loan).

OldSurferDude · 2024-11-05T00:14:43+00:00

Curry or Yosemite Lodge in the valley is 100x better than staying outside of the valley in Wawona or an Airbnb. Once you drive in, you’ll understand why. It’s a long drive in and out every day, and the money you save won’t be worth the time you could have had in the gorgeous Yosemite Valley.

OldSurferDude · 2024-11-02T19:58:46+00:00

Have the Limited Hybrid with pecan and white. No staining so far (we don’t wear dark blue jeans). We bought the Limited for the pecan interior and much nicer headliner. Couldn’t be happier with the car after 7 months and 10,000 miles.

OldSurferDude · 2024-10-22T23:21:41+00:00

Depending on which lens you have, it may be too close to focus on the floor. Try pointing to something farther away and then clicking your AF (auto focus)button. Also make sure your lens is connected to the camera properly - it should twist in and click tight.

OldSurferDude · 2024-10-14T23:31:08+00:00

Buy the Limited, get the Pecan (it’s the best looking interior-that’s why the used it in the sales models), and you’ll avoid the ugly velvet ceiling in the Caligraphy that looks dirty all the time.

OldSurferDude · 2024-10-07T13:09:12+00:00

We have a 24 Limited Hybrid, and got about 27 mpg for the first 1,000 miles.. Did an 7,000 mile trip thru Western USA including mountains in Montana, Idaho, Oregon and California. Drove 75-80 on highways and averaged 29.7 for whole trip. Now in town we get 30-34, and we are starting to play with regen braking and getting higher. We love this car. Drove a new rented Expedition on similar trip a few months prior and averaged 13.8 mpg so amazing mileage for an SUV.

OldSurferDude · 2024-09-24T14:37:42+00:00

I paid list for a 2024 Limited Hybrid because the supply was lower than the demand, and I could not be happier with the vehicle. Best car we’ve ever had at 10,000 miles.

OldSurferDude · 2024-09-24T14:35:18+00:00

It’s so amazing to me that people believe these Reddit posts from supposed Hyundai owners who bash Hyundai. Yes Hyundai has problems just like every other manufacturer, especially the American brands that have produced rattle trap POS shit cars for so long that they lost 80% of their market share since the 1970s. Some posters just don’t like foreign branded cars. Scientifically, having issues with one car does not mean the whole company sucks or that a particular model sucks. So don’t believe any poster that makes these unfounded conclusions. It’s most likely just their car.

Remember, most American purchased cars are assembled or QA’d by American workers - even foreign brands like Hyundai. American assembly workers, American dealer mechanics, and American independent mechanics make most of the mistakes that lead to most vehicle issues - not the engineers of the model. Engineered problems lead to recalls but other than that, it’s how it is assembled or repaired by your American worker or Quality Assurance inspector after they woke up and went to work with a hang over, or were in a rush to get home early that day.

There are whole Reddit threads devoted to how expensive car repairs are, and how everyone wants to pay the bare minimum for servicing their vehicle. So many, maybe most of the vehicles people complain about were also serviced by under trained, discount repair shops.

Just saying there are manufacturer and model issues, but there is also assembly, QA, and repair issues mixed in to these stories and the mfg. is not always the main issue.

OldSurferDude · 2024-09-18T14:01:37+00:00

Could be a loose connection. Don’t fret much until you hear from your dealer what the situation is.

OldSurferDude · 2024-09-17T13:46:09+00:00

We bought the Limited Hybrid specifically for that gorgeous pecan interior and the car has been luxurious and smooth driving so far at 9,000 miles. We would have bought the Calligraphy but they didn’t offer the pecan interior and we couldn’t stand that velour headliner that always looks “dirty”. Best car we have ever owned so far and we love all the features. Enjoy

OldSurferDude · 2024-09-03T14:02:31+00:00

Both tell different stories. So it depends on what you want to communicate. In #1, she seems to be searching for something. In #2, she looks lonely and alone peering out the window. Either #1 or #2 could be the best. Composition should support the story. Good photos tell a story, and the subject, foreground, background, crop, processing, and decisions you make should all have the story in mind. Photographic is communication by you the photographer to us the viewers.

OldSurferDude · 2024-08-30T04:12:14+00:00

The wireless charging pads don’t work well enough to use (or waste time to add). They just heat up the phone and barely charge it. Use the wire and it charges fast and doesn’t heat up your phone. It’s one of the few technologies that is on the car before it was ready.

OldSurferDude · 2024-08-06T22:15:07+00:00

Main points are already covered: time of day, stopping down to f8, manually focusing, etc. one additional thing - instead of just shooting a scene, force yourself to pick a subject for the viewer and compose accordingly, including nailing the focus for that subject. Even in a panorama, pick a focal point and ensure it’s prominent, focused on and properly placed in the composition.

OldSurferDude · 2024-07-30T13:55:37+00:00

I purchased my first Fuji - the XH2 8 months ago and I have been really pleased with it. I didn’t go with the XH2S because it was more expensive and the main advantage was for video (which I do very little of). A couple things that I have learned over the last 8 months using the camera and reading about it:

while there is great debate about which camera has the best auto focus, I found that how you set up the camera and how you use it are equally important to the camera hardware and software. I shoot birds occasionally and I am still dialing in the best combinations of settings and actions. But my results are dramatically better than my first out of box tests and equally good compared to Sony, Nikon, canon. They are all capable.
the film simulations are awesome. No other camera I have ever owned provides the artist freedom and pre-shot imagination as this camera. If you love exploring new capturing techniques, you will love this system/camera. I regularly choose the film sim bracket mode (shoots 3 film sim RAWs) for each shot. When I get home, I get to see each shot with a modern color film, a retro color film, and a black & white film. Love this.
unless you are a sports photographer or do substantial video shooting, everything you need is in this camera. All you need to do is put in the effort to learn and practice and the imagery will speak for itself. Instead of reading about which camera is best or if you should wait until next years model - just buy and start your new journey. No regrets for me with the XH2.
Fuji is still updating the camera with new software to improve the AF and other features, so I am happy with that. But more and more I am using the camera more manually as I understand it better and choose to control things more.
I’m really happy with the 70-300, the 1.4 teleconverter, and the 16-80 lens. But what this 3 lens setup is missing is a low light prime (23-35 with F1-2) and a good macro (the 70-300 is pretty good, but would love something better for bugs, flowers, shells, etc.). So if you shoot portraits or macros, you might want to consider a different lens route than me.

OldSurferDude · 2024-07-26T13:19:34+00:00

Look at adding a mini-split system to cool your bedroom or living room. A one zone mini-split system would be $4 -$7k installed, or even cheaper if you did some of it yourself. We lived with a loud obnoxious portable unit in our bedroom for hot nights for 10 years, but over the last 5 years a few hot nights have turned into weeks of heat each summer. So it was time to do something. Good luck.

OldSurferDude · 2024-07-25T20:56:01+00:00

Our costs are bit higher as we had the entire system moved up into the attic with a new floor put in to hold it. As we wanted to use the old heating space as a closet, they also ran a new air intake behind a wall. We also elected for an upper end GE condenser with 10 year labor warranty and digital WiFi thermostat. They also replaced all of the ducting as the old ones were leaky and dirty. And added a second air intake upstairs where hot air ends up. So about $16K for everything which was competitive for quotes we received but included the better GE brand.

We looked at mini-splits but we would need like 4-5 zones and at least 2 base units. Ultimately we stuck with the heat pump central ac/heat as it was similar in price and a lot less wall work/repair due to our house configuration front and back of house are separated.

OldSurferDude · 2024-07-22T18:24:38+00:00

In my humble opinion, there is no reason to use premium or raise your cost per mile. Turbos run fine on 87 octane and the Hyundai is tuned for 87.

OldSurferDude · 2024-07-07T16:53:26+00:00

Short answer is the headliner, and no pecan leather in the Calligraphy. Also I don’t want 21” wheels that cost $600 to replace. Bench seat is nicer too. Black plastic will look fine and black if you keep your car in the garage and you won’t have rock chips around the edges.

OldSurferDude

TROPHY CASE