Gadgetroad.com - the road to future gadgets

Amazon Kindle 2 reader shows its face in hi-res pictures

John Pope — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:23:08 +0000

E-Book readers seem to be a thing of the future as Kindle, the first e-B00k reader from Amazon was out of stock in their website for many days. Now with the imminent release of the Kindle 2 (it’s said that Kindle 2 will announced today, with a special Stephen King story), there’s hi-res pictures on Internet, which will only make you drawl thinking of the device.

From what we’ve gathered it seems the Kindle Reader 2 will be slimmer than the first version and will sell for 359$, same as Kindle. Enjoy the pics

Update (new specs):

the 6 inch diagonal display has a 600 x 800 resolution and can display up to 16 shades of gray
battery life is up 25 percent
books are stored in a 2GB size internal memory
turning pages is now 20 % faster
if can be yours starting February 24th

Kindle 2: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device (Buy From Amazon.com)

Nokia e75 - a business phone with style

Mike Andrew — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 13:44:16 +0000

I’m a Nokia e51 owner and for me this is a great phone: smart, slim, stylish and tough. Though, it’s kind of bad for web surfing as it has no QWERTY keyboard and a very small screen (2″ or so).

But today, when i saw the new Nokia e75, i said to myself: “I have to buy this one!”.

It looks like the E51 but it has a full keyboard and a bigger screen. Also, it’s not a lot wider, cause the keyboard slides beneath the upper part of the phone, as you can see in the pictures below. We’re not sure how big is that new screen but I’d recon somewhere around 2.4 - 2.5″ . Oh, and there’s one bad news: it seems that this gadget wont have GPS receiver. That’s too bad…

As a conclusion, this new Nokia e75 combines the good parts of E51 and e71 in one piece. Of course, that means the price will be pretty high (around 400 pounds - 450 euros in Europe), a little too high if you ask me.

Still, this phone looks great and i can’t wait to get my hand on a real one. And i won’t have to wait too much, as the Nokia e75 will be available on the market from March or April.

MePhone, a ‘me too’ smartphone from Dell?

John Pope — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 03:57:38 +0000

Dell is one of the few big hardware manufacturers that doesn’t have a smartphone in its offer, nor a regular phone. It seem tough, that with all the hipe touchscreen devices are getting lately, Dell is planning to launch its own smartphone, called MePhone.

Few details are known now as even Dell doesn’t decided yet what the MePhone will be, the most important unknown being the operating system. It’s said that Dell engineers were working for some time building prototypes using Google Android and Windows Mobile.

The MePhone is said to be launched sometime in Q3 2009 so stay put and watch our news for further updates.

Source: UnWired View, Gizmodo

LG KC 910 Renoir-Powerful All-In-One Camera Phone

Sony Ericsson - the Ryuga W903 concept

Mike Andrew — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:22:11 +0000

It’s well known Sony Ericsson lost a lot of ground last year and have financial problems. That’s why new models like this W903 might bring a fresh breath of air for them.

Of course, the device you see in the picture below is just a concept, one inspired by the futuristic Mazda Ryuga. It comes with the classic SE interface, big OLED Touch-Screen (Cool) and astonishing looks. And even though I’m not a big fan of SE, such a phone i would buy for sure. What do you think?

Sony Ericsson W903 concept phone

PS: This Sony Ericsson W903 concept is part of the Ryuga designs you can find here.

Kindle 2 to appear in February on Amazon

John Pope — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 09:18:49 +0000

Kindle was one of the most successfull eBook readers on the market mainly because it was produced and had the support of Amazon, the largest online store in the world. Now, after less than two years, Kindle is ready for a comeback with a new face and upgraded functions. There’s rumors on Internet that it will come around in February, on 9th to be exact.

From the first leaked pictures it seems that Kindle 2 has a more organic shape, without too many straight angles, that made the first Kindle look almost like an F-117 stealth bomber in while knight color. The second iteration is also white but has got a little slimmer.

The new unit will feature a joystick that replaces the previous scroll wheel and will charge of a miniUSB cable, not the dedicated charger that was needed for the first Kindle. The backplate is made of metal and there’s no SD card slot, but the unit seems to come with over 1.5 GB of internal memory.

Source: UberGizmo and more pictures on BGR

Apple iPhone G3 might be closer than you think

Mike Andrew — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:00:27 +0000

It seems we might see a new generation of Apple iPhone by the end of this year. Actually, it might see the lights at the MacWorld in June. Why do we say that? Well… because of this rumor.

Not sure if this is true or not, but hopefully they will finally include the one thing iPhone lacks and I need: Bluetooth with AD-2P capabilities (for listening music with a wireless stereo headset that is). There’s no word about that, but it seems the new iPhone (that might be called iPhone Nano?!?) will come with better multimedia performance, as it might have multiple core CPUs and dedicated graphic chips support. So… new opportunities rise for iPhone game developers Good for them…

People seem to love iPhone 3G a lot

Mike Andrew — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 14:36:52 +0000

Or so it seems if we take a look at the graph bellow (from Engadget) showing you how many days it took for a couple of the important smartphones on the market to reach the 1.000.000 devices sold cap.

Iphone 3G competes with it’s older brother iPhone, Nokia 5800, the G1 phone and Blackberry Storm. It’s true that iPhone 3G was launched in more than 20 coutnries in the same time while others (except for Nokia 5800) we’re mainly launched just in the US in their early days, but the difference is quite… enourmous.

iPhone 3G vs competitiors

As you can see, it took the iPhone 3G 3 days to reach the 1 million cap. Next in line comes Nokia 5800, that needed 57 days, while iPhone and Blackberry Storm needed more than 70.

Quite frankly i’m quite amazed by these numbers. It seems people love iPhone 3G and Apple really are great in marketing their products. In the end though, i can bet Nokia will sell a lot more 5800s than Apple will sell iPhone 3Gs. But that’s not the point…

New face for Gadgetroad

Mike Andrew — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:11:17 +0000

Two years after this blog was created, we decided that it needs a drastic face-lift. So… here it is.

Gadgetroad has from today a new graphic face: lighter, more modern and more usable.

Also, with the redesign comes a new editorial direction: we’re going to write a lot about future. Future gadgets, applications, software, gizmos, etc. But mainly gadgets. So, if you want to see the hottest concepts, how will Apple 3 look, what’s the next cool phone from Nokia and Blackberry, what’s the future of netbooks, etc, you should stay tuned.

That’s about it for today. Please feel free to give us feedback on this new look

Motorola PEBL Rose Bloom for Valentine Day

Gadget Road — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:46:15 +0000

Every year on 14th February, people from different parts of the world celebrate Valentine Day. It is considered as a day of celebrating love as lover gift each other with something nice. To help you find a gift for your loved one, Motorola would release a new phone on Valentine Day i.e. 14th February.

Here are some of the features of this phone -

Elegant and fasion-centric design

Touch sensitive panel

2 Megapixel camera

Bluetooh connectivity

Mp3 player

Up to 7.2Mbps HSDPA data transfer rates

The phone is also expected to be available at an affordable price becuase of the low specs when compared with phones already available in the market.

Samsung Armani Night Effect

Gadget Road — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:30:56 +0000

The Samsung Armani M7500 was recently launched in UK. It has also been named as Night Life. The phone is a result of partnership between Giorgio Armani and Samsung Electronics. Night Life is targeted towards anyone for whom music is an essential part of life.

Samsung Armani M7500 is a sleek, stylish phone meant for people with fasionable lifestyles. Night Life represents fashion and technology. That being said, it’s also a music-dedicated mobile phone with many advanced features. Night Life is a mobile designed specifically for young and social crowd. The phone glows when it’s active. It enables an end user to enjoy colorful talk and music while being on the move.

What makes this phone trendy and different from others is the illuminating LED light around the edge. This will make you stand out from others in the dark. Apart from the LED light and music-dedicated keys, Samsung M7500 also supports several multimedia features. It lets you stream videos, download music files at high-speed, and it supports speeds up to 3.6Mbps for video conferences.

Armani 7500 comes with a 3.0 megapixel camera, 120mb internal memory, support for different file formats, and inbuilt FM radio. So basically this phone has everything for a music lover. With Bluetooth and USB connectivity supported, you can connect several peripherals to this phone. This includes wireless and wired peripherals.

Samsung Armani M7500 is available in UK, and is being sold exclusively by Phones 4 U ground and Vodafone. At the end, if you’re looking for a stylish phone that meets all your requirements and makes you stand out from the crowd then you should definitely consider this phone.

Nokia 5800 Features

Gadget Road — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:27:55 +0000

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is another brilliant product from Nokia. As the name suggests, it’s a mobile phone with advanced features to allow end-users to enjoy music. It won’t be wrong to consider Nokia 5800 as an entertainment rich phone instead of a mobile office smartphone.

What makes Nokia 5800 XpressMusic different from others is the fact that it’s the first ever Symbian S60 5th Edition mobile phone with touchscreen. The touchscreen market is already busy with some big names already available in the market, but Nokia 5800 is expected to create a buzz among people who love high-end mobile phones with music-dedicated functions. This phone gives a modern look and feel.

Here are some of the features of Nokia 5800 –

It comes with a touchscreen. The screen size if 3.2’’ and it has the ability to display 16 million colors. It also supports double tap, which is required to select an option. The buttons and menus have been created smartly in order to let you easily find and select options.
It comes with a 3.2’’ megapixel camera with dual-LED flash. The camera also lets you shoot 30fps VGA videos.
It supports several audio and video formats. So with this phone, you’re all set to enjoy your journey while traveling from one place to another.
A small button is available on the phone, which when clicked displays a list of options which can be used for playing music. Other information about track, album is also provided when a song is being played.
In order to input text easily, Nokia has incorporated virtual T9 alphanumeric keypad in this phone. Mini and large virtual QWERTY keyboards are also available in the phone.
Nokia 5800 comes with approx 80mb internal memory but MicroSD cards with capacity of 8GB, 16GB can be used with the phone.

To conclude, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic mobile phone is fully loaded with advanced multimedia features. Adding to this, it also features a stylish design. If you’re a fan of Nokia products and would love to get a touchscreen phone, then you should definitely wait and watch for this phone. It’s expected to make it big in the phone industry.

Sony Ericsson C510 Features

Gadget Road — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:24:54 +0000

Sony Ericsson has recently announced the latest member of the Cyber-Shot family. The latest member has been named as C510. The Sony Ericsson C510 is expected to boast all the powerful and quality features expected from the Cyber-Shot range.

The C510 also introduces a new technology named as Smile Shuter. It lets you capture the smiles of your buddies by detecting it and then immediately taking a photo. The best part of the Sony Ericsson C510 is that it is expected to be available at an affordable price. So if you don’t like heavy price tags of Cyber-Shot then you’re more than likely to like the price tag of C510.

Being a modern and an advanced phone, the C510 comes with loads of features. Here are some of the features –

It comes with a 3.2 Megapixel camera, coupled with a new technology named as Smile Shutter
It comes with a 2.2’’ TFT screen
It supports video recording and it also supports different file formats for music files
It comes with an in-built FM Radio with RDS
3D and motion gaming is also supported by Sony Ericsson C510
3G capability is also available in C510
YouTube, Google Maps are also accessible through this phone

Sony Ericsson C510 comes with features which can be easily found in new phones. But what makes this phone different from others is the expected price tag, and being a part of the Cyber-Shot range. Sony is expected to launch this phone in February. So if you’re looking for a stylish phone with nice features and an amazing price tag then you should definitely wait for Sony to release this phone.

INQ1-much more than a facebook phone

Gadget Road — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:21:22 +0000

If you’re someone who uses social networking sites, Internet very frequently and just cannot afford to miss an update then INQ1 is meant for you. INQ1 is a mobile phone that lets you access social networking sites easily while being on the move. When compared to accessing sites from desktops or laptops, you won’t find a difference except the screen size. It’s meant for people who want to always be connected.

Facebook is one of the most popular social networking sites, and INQ1 supports all the features available on Facebook. With INQ1, all you need to do is to sign in and start connecting with your buddies. The ‘push technology’ supported by the phone keeps you updated with all the updates related to your buddies.

Another interesting feature of INQ1 is the free voice calling and instant messaging through Skype. Easy to use Skype interface is available inside the phone. You can make voice calls for free to your buddies through this service. All you need to do is to first register with Skype, and then come online. Once your buddy also comes online after registering with Skype, you can start make free voice calls and send instant messages.

A button has also been created to enhance web experience. A click on this button will provide you the list of the sites you frequently visit. So you can easily access sites. Web based music sites are also supported by this phone. INQ1 provides a number of features and lets you to do whatever you want to do on web.

3.2 Megapixel camera is also available in the phone. The integrated functionality lets you click photos and upload them on your profile easily. It also supports 3G with HSDPA, GPRS and EDGE. It can also be used as a modem for a laptop. It, however, doesn’t support wireless connectivity.

It won’t be wrong to consider INQ1 as an advanced entertainment phone as it’s loaded with a number of amazing features. If you want to own a phone which has the latest features available on modern phones along with the ability to use web and social networking sites easily, then INQ1 is meant for you. You won’t regret your purchase as it has almost everything that would expect in an entertainment device.

Nokia N97-Combination of Style and Technology

Gadget Road — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:25:57 +0000

Following the success of several phones launched under the popular N-Series, Nokia has officially announced another handset under the inevitable N-Series with the introduction of Nokia N97. Nokia N97 is fully loaded with various multimedia functions, and can be considered as a perfect combination of style and features.

Nokia N97 is packed with superb capabilities, which includes a high definition built-in 5megapixel camera, 20X digital zoom with flash and auto focus. It comes with a huge 3- inch display which supports 16 million color resolutions. It also comes with 20gb storage space, which allows you to keep over 20 movies and over 5000 songs.

For all those music lovers out there, Nokia N97 would serve you with amazing music experience as it is endowed with superb 3D stereo sound technology and dedicated music buttons.

Here are some of the noticeable features, which will help you to judge this phone better -

3 inch display with 16 million colors

Up to 20 GB of storage with inbuilt HDD
5 Mega Pixel camera with 20X digital zoom and LED flash
Advance mobile photography with the frequency of 30 frames per second
Long lasting battery with 400+ hour standby time, 4+ hour talk time and 24+ hour music playback
Qwerty slide out keyboard
Compatible with A-GPS and GPS and other 3G features
Stereo Bluetooth connectivity, USB 2.0 and Wi-Fi

At the end, Nokia N97 is an integration of both style and sophistication, with an aim to provide a powerful multimedia mobile phone to an end-user. This phone seems to be all set to make a sound in mobile world, and you can expect Nokia N97 to be available in the first half of 2009.

Nokia N96 - Latest in N-Series

Nokia E63 Specifications

Gadget Road — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:01:09 +0000

Nowadays, business phones are becoming quiet popular among masses. Nokia E-series mobile phones were specifically designed to help professionals in their businesses. The E- series mobile phones by Nokia offer mobility to professionals by providing them required features.

So far, Nokia has launched 3 mobile phones under its E-series namely E60, E61 and E70. These phones provide all the features that are required by an executive to manage his work while being on the move. Following the success of these three phones, Nokia has decided to release another phone under the E-Series. This one has been named as Nokia E-63. Nokia E63 is specifically designed to keep a balance between personal and professional life.

Apart from the common features which all Nokia E-Series phones have, E63 distinguishes itself from others with its ability to switch modes, from corporate mode to personal mode. With a single key press, you can easily shift from viewing a corporate mail, appointment to picture of a friend or a personal email.

Other noticeable features of Nokia E63 include

High resolution 2 Mega pixel camera
3.5mm stereo socket

Compatible with all 3G standard
110 Mb of internal memory, expandable upto 8Gb
USB 2.0 connector
FM radio with RDS
1500mAh long lasting battery
Works on the frequency band of 850\900\1800\1900 MHz

To conclude, Nokia E63 seems to be an impressive business phone that should help you access your emails, and complete your document work while being on the move. And being the Nokia product, you can expect some good support and price for Nokia E63.

Sony Ericsson W705 Features

Gadget Road — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 14:21:40 +0000

Mobile phones are no longer simple gadgets which are to be used for communication purposes. Instead, they act as our finest companions as they let us enjoy music, access websites, create document files and more. Coming to the music, there are many mobile handsets available in markets that are compatible with music. But Sony nearly holds a monopoly when it comes to music phones. Sony Ericsson has introduced a long range of mobile phones like business phones, camera phones and other phones but with the introduction of walkman series they created a boom in the market. Till date no phone has matched the quality of sound which Sony Ericsson W-Series phones have produced.

The walkman series comprises of amazing music phones such as W550i, W660i, W800i, W900i, W950i, W810i, W850i, W880i, W700i and W300i. The journey continues with the introduction of Sony Ericsson W705 music phone. W705 is a slider phone mainly dedicated towards music. Sony has introduces a new feature of shake control with this phone. This feature will enable you to change your songs by just shaking your phone. But for this you need to press the music button while shaking the phone. Another noticeable feature worth mentioning is the SenseMe, which is used to create a playlist according to the mood instead of the genere or the album.

Other specifications of W705 are given below -

2.4 inches QVGA display with up to 256k colors
High definition 3.2 Mega Pixel camera
Works on Quad band GSM and supports all 3G features

Compatible with WLAN, WiFi (IEEE 802.11)
120 MB of internal memory which can be extended up to 4GB using memory stick
USB 2.0, v2.0 with A2DP
FM radio with RDS
Bluetooth but no infrared port
Long lasting standard Li-ion Battery with standby time of over 400 hours

As of now, there is no news about the release date but the Sony Ericsson W705 is expected to be available in January, 2009. So if you’re someone who want to get hold of a music phone then you should definitely wait for this phone to be available in your country.

Source - Dialaphone-Sony Ericsson W705

Blackberry 9500 Accessories and Cases

Gadget Road — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:04:23 +0000

Blackberry 9500 is a stylish, touch screen 3G mobile phone in the market. This phone has its own unique features that distinguish it from others. All its features can be easily handled with its single touch 3.25inches TFT screen with 65 k colors. The 360×480 pixels screen resolution gives you distinct picture quality. Almost all multimedia functions are present in this cool 155grms weight smart gadget.

Coming to technical specifications, Blackberry 9500 is compatible with all the networks such as CDMA, EDGE, GPRS, GSM and HSDPA. The device contains a 3MP digital camera with a resolution of 2048×1536 pixels. Phone uses a powerful operating system which enhances its speed and features.

There are number of Blackberry 9500 accessories that are available in the market and they are mainly produced by RIM itself. These include Micro SD card for memory expansion, a Bluetooth stereo hands free with which you can listen to your favorite songs without the hassles of wires. You can even get a stylish, cool looking holster case for your BlackBerry.

Enough of BlackBerry 9500? Hold on, there is another quality phone by RIM. Blackberry Storm which can be considered as an enhanced version of Blackberry 9500 is now available in the market. This was produced by RIM to give direct competition to iPhone and HTC Touch Diamond. The storm also offers a High resolution 3.2 Mega pixel camera for crystal clear images.

Though Blackberry Storm is loaded with tons of multimedia features, at the same time it is a delicate phone. However you might feel that its super large screen are more vulnerable to scratches because of the daily use. To prevent these scratches, a number of cases for Blackberry Storm are available in stores. You can choose from leather cases, skin cases and many more. Apart from Blackberry Storm Case, you can even go for a Blackberry Storm Pouch or a Holster.

Both of the above mentioned phones are quality ones and are already making a buzz in the mobile world. In addition to the features, a lot of quality accessories are also availabe to complement these phones. If you’re looking for a decent phone with quality features, then you should definitely consider BlackBerry Storm 9500.

Stop that television being the focal point of your room

Gadget Road — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:44:33 +0000

The decreasing prices of LCD televisions has resulted in larger screens for many households. The most used location for these to be placed, estimated at 75%, is above the fireplace in the central room of the house. The increase in size both women and designers have been having stern issues with a 50-70? black glass object as the centrepiece and main point of the living room.

From a distance it is simply a visual or mechanical change when the television is hidden away, to many it can change the entire atmosphere of the room. Even when the display has been turned off, attention is either consciously or unconsciously drawn towards the blank screen. This is not just a figment of peoples imaginations, it is very real, and it can have a direct effect on both the d√©cor and atmosphere of the room.

Concealment devices are more often than not custom made furniture. Due to both tv sizes and room measurements there is no single solution that works for everyone, hence why systems such as these tv stands often cost more than the TV itself. The justification lies in that the time, money and creative effort spent in making the room look great is not destroyed by trying to make a 50″ piece of black glass blend easily into the room decor.

If you were to look into extensive market research you would see there are a a number of solutions to get around this problem. All with certain pros and cons. The widely used option is usually a mechanical tv lift.

A TV lift effectively combines both an item of furniture and a TV stand. It gives the user the power to switch between viewing a piece of everyday furniture or viewing the plasma television. This is operated using a remote controlled lifting device which is fitted inside the piece of furniture. Once activated this mechanism will cause a lift to move which in turn will cause the TV to gently rise from the furniture and effectively turn it into a tv stand.

This operating system effectively solves all the problems bought to attention by a home designer. The rooms look and feel does not have to be compromised, just modified in a way which cannot be seen unless controlled. The television no longer has to be in full view unless you require it to be. As well as this there are security benefits which mean your tv is a lot less likely to be thiefed or broken in the every day hussle around your home.

Conclusion -
No matter what efforts television manufacturers put into their aesthetic design, they can’t solve the problem of having a large blank screen take over a room when the TV is off. It is no surprise then, that demand for concealment solutions has been doubling each year.

By educating themselves about concealment mechanisms, professionals such as TDK can offer the home owner a solution allows a big television to be hidden within the decor using a TV lift, while maintaining the visual design of the room. It is a win-win situation for both parties.

Ventrilo Server Hosting

Gadget Road — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:17:20 +0000

Ventrilo is an independent application that is used for real time communications. It’s the Voice over Internet Protocol program with clients available for both Microsoft Windows & Mac OS X. It offers surround sound positioning and special sound effects. It is mainly used by gamers for multiplayer games.

If you want to run a clan, and want to allow real time communication to add excitement to your gaming experience then should consider this application. Ventrilo uses minimal CPU resources but still, different kind of ventrilo servers are used for running it. In order to use this software, you need to install it on the server and then you need to connect to it by using freely available client program. In all, you will require the server IP, password (if any) and the port number for establishing connection to the server.

At present, the Ventrilo server is supported on the following platforms –

Microsoft Windows 9x / NT / 2000 / XP
Linux i386
FreeBSD i386
NetBSD i386
Solaris i386
Mac OSX PowerPC 32bit
Solaris Sparc 64bit

It’s pretty easy to install a ventrilo sever. And once it’s been installed, you need to configure the options. You need to setup the number of people that can connect to the server at a time, change server name, setup ban list and more. You can find web hosts which support ventrilo on their servers. While signing up with a web host, make sure the web host meets all the minimum specifications required to run the program or else, you won’t be able to enjoy the gaming experience. Some web hosts even offer free ventrilo hosting. Again, be sure to compare their server specifications and the minimum specifications required by the Ventrilo software.

TeamSpeak Server Hosting

Gadget Road — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:13:43 +0000

TeamSpeak is similar to Ventrilo as it is also used to enable people to communicate with each other over the Internet. It comes with a client and a server program. The server acts like a host to several users available in different parts of world. It allows different users to get into a conference and communicate with each other while they are connected to the same server.

Like Ventrilo, which is run on the Ventrilo servers, the TeamSpeak also requires a server for its execution. The server version of the program is installed on the TeamSpeak servers which are configured to run TeamSpeak in order to allow people to communicate with each other through Internet. It is mainly used by gamers while playing multiplayer games.

You would require a web host which allows TeamSpeak on the server, and you can find such web host on Internet. TeamSpeak server hosting is not much different Ventrilo server hosting, and that’s why you can easily find a web host which allows you to run TeamSpeak. As always, make sure to compare prices so as to get the best value for your money.