Barrington Handicrafts Co., Ltd. Now Sells in China--at 20% Off U.S. Prices if you mention Amoy Magic or Bill Brown

I've watched Barrington Handicrafts since they opened in Xiamen a decade ago, marveling at how they can produce such quality products with no QC! (Click Here for Obama's Bag: High Quality with no QC at Barrington, the case I wrote about them, July 2014 Asia Case Research Journal).

For a decade, the creed of Barrington's Xiamen plant has been "Valuable Products Made by Valuable People", and putting people first--both customers and workers--has certainly paid off. Where other Mainland China firms struggle with poor productivity and up to 25% annual labor turnover, Barrington's productivity and quality are high, and turnover is only about 4%.

Thanks to grateful and loyal workers, Barrington is almost unbelievably flexible and competitive. The company can profit even while customizing  one-off products, whereas  competitors may need to produce hundreds or thousands to clear a profit.

Thanks, Barrington, for showing that a global company can fully embrace social responsibility and at the same time make a fair profit! For several years, I've been using you as an example of ethical and moral business in my Xiamen University MBA classes (business strategy, comparative management and leadership and organizational behavior). You put the theory into practice!

My Favorite!

Check out their products at Barrington's China or U.S. websites--and get a quality, customized gift for your boss or loved one (my loved one is my boss!). And GET 20% off if you mention Bill Brown or Amoy Magic in the checkout form.

And learn more about Fujian and Xiamen Island from my Amazon eBooks (please rate them on Amazon if you find them helpful):   

Discover Xiamen" $2.99

"Fujian Adventure" $1.99

Bill Brown
 Xiamen University
 www.amoymagic.com

Manual Focus for Androit Smartphone Video and Photos

Manual Focus for Android Smartphone!

My Samsung Note 3 is good enough that I use it to film my television program here in Fujian, China--but I was long frustrated with the video zooming in and out, even though the phone was on a tripod and I stood as if I was in a straitjacket. After 30+ takes to get only 10 usable shots (because of the video zooming in and out),  I was ready for a straightjacket. Fortunately, Android now has a way out of this problem!

1. Turn on the video camera.
2. Tap the screen on the area you want to manually fix the focus  (you may need to hold it a second or two, depending on the phone).
3. You'll see a small circle with a square inside, and  AF inside the square. This means the Auto-Focus is now manually fixed on the area of the screen you tapped. You can now move the phone about and it will stay focused on that one spot. Kudos to Google. It was long enough coming.

But how to do this when you're filming yourself, as I do for my TV program? My solution is cumbersome but it works. I place some large object about my height (cardboard cutout or something) in front of the camera, tap on that area, then take its place.

I hope this was helpful. Click Here if you'd like to read how I use an Android  smartphone (Galaxy Note ), Ravelli tripod, Ampridge smartphone directional boom mike and Kootek Android Smartphone Remote Control to film myself for the Fujian TV program (shown 5 days a week).

Enjoy Amoy!

Dr. Bill

And learn more about Fujian and Xiamen Island from my eBooks below.

"Discover Xiamen" $2.99

"Fujian Adventure" $1.99

Bill Brown Xiamen University www
oymagic.com